


Wide Open Spaces

by unsaltysaltines



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: F/F, Farm Hand Nicole, I attempted a slow burn…don't think it worked very well, Nicole's real gay, Poor Nicole, Waverly has goats, but what else is new tbh, things get a lil spicy in chapter 4, things get sexy…eventually, this is my addition to the yeehaw canon, tw: homophobic language/violence in chapter 5, tw: mild homophobic language, welcome to the 90s y'all
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-06
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:54:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 28,066
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26315242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unsaltysaltines/pseuds/unsaltysaltines
Summary: Waverly returns home to Gibson Farm after graduation, not entirely sure what's next for her.Nicole just wants to do her job and keep her head down, but her boss's niece might complicate matters.Aka,The 90s Yeehaw Farm AU nobody asked for.
Relationships: Waverly Earp & Nicole Haught, Waverly Earp/Nicole Haught
Comments: 73
Kudos: 391





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This chapter is so short, but I promise there's so much good stuff coming!
> 
> Enjoy the introduction to this universe; these idiots make me pretty happy.
> 
> [This fic has a playlist!](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1XN4lEtTXMKw9vY9y9Mfb5?si=dB_6nu4RQbSpn0_9S_YyCg) Enjoy the selection of 90s favourites!

***

_Who doesn't know what I'm talking about_   
_Who's never left home, who's never struck out_   
_To find a dream and a life of their own_   
_A place in the clouds, a foundation of stone_   
  
_Many precede and many will follow_   
_ A young girl's dreams no longer hollow  
It takes the shape of a place out west  
But what it holds for her, she hasn't yet guessed _   
  
_She needs, wide open spaces_   
_Room to make her big mistakes_   
_She needs, new faces_   
_She knows the high stakes_

_-_ _Wide Open Spaces,_ The Chicks

***

_**Summer 1998** _

__

Of all the things Waverly expected to see when she returned home for the summer, the new ranch hand was the absolute _last_ on her list.

__

Once she’d finished unloading the last of her things from the back of her red Jeep, Waverly quickly changed into clean clothes, dug out her riding boots from the bottom of the closet in the front hall, and headed for the barn. With how busy the year had gotten, she hadn’t been able to come home as often as she would have liked, and the sunny day was just begging for a ride.

__

Without stopping to think about it her feet adjusted to the uneven ground on the well-worn path that led to the barn from the small farmhouse where she’d grown up. As she walked, she noticed that someone had finally gotten around to mending spots in the short, wooden fence that were either rotting or missing entirely when she’d last visited, and she wondered if Gus had finally hired someone to help her run the farm like she’d been insisting she would.

__

It had been nearly eight months since Uncle Curtis died, and Waverly knew that Gus was having a hard time running things on her own. She and Curtis had been partners in every sense of the word, splitting up responsibilities to make sure that everything got done, and their system had worked like a charm until the morning Curtis’s long-suffering heart just couldn’t keep up with him anymore.

__

Waverly was hit with a pang of sadness as she thought about her uncle. He and Gus had taken in Waverly and her sister Wynonna when, fifteen years ago, their father and oldest sister were killed in a car accident. At only seven years old, Waverly’s world was turned upside down, but Curtis proved to be a better father than she could have ever imagined.

__

It was thanks to Curtis that Waverly went away for university. It was thanks to his encouragement that she majored in Classics and History, instead of going against her instincts to major in something more “marketable.” If it weren’t for her aunt and uncle, in fact, Waverly couldn’t imagine how her life would have turned out.

__

She paused and leaned against one of the wooden fenceposts, staring out at the pasture where the cows were grazing in the late spring sunshine and letting her mind wander.

__

After only a couple minutes, Waverly was yanked back into the present when she saw an unfamiliar figure on horseback appear over the hill. She couldn’t make out much beyond a flash of bright red hair and an equally bright checked shirt, until the horse turned to the side and-

__

She was a _woman_.

__

Decent farmhands were few and far between in Purgatory, never mind women. In fact, Waverly couldn’t think of a time she’d _ever_ met a female hand. Then again, Gus was the only woman in the Ghost River County who ran her own operation, so why wouldn’t she hire a woman to help out? Intrigued, Waverly quickened her pace slightly, hoping to run into the mystery woman somewhere along the path.

__

Waverly greeted Buttercup, the horse she’d been riding since she was ten, with a pat on the nose and an apple from the canvas bag she’d slung over her shoulder before leaving the house. Anxious to get out in the sunshine, Waverly quickly saddled the black mare and led her out into the pasture.

__

As she firmly planted a foot in the stirrup and swung her other leg over the horse’s back, Waverly realized how much she was actually looking forward to the summer. As Buttercup began walking their favourite route around the property, Waverly reveled in the peace of her surroundings.

__

While still keeping her eyes peeled for the Mystery Woman, of course.

__

Waverly let her mind wander again as she guided the horse slowly in the direction of the nearby pond, but it didn’t wander far before returning to the woman she’d seen out on the ridge.

__

Almost as if the universe were listening in on her every thought, as she rounded a bend in the path and the pond came into view, she spotted the same chestnut-coloured horse wandering around the edge of the water, only without anyone in the saddle. A quick look around revealed the rider seated in the shade, propped up against a thick tree trunk and deep in a book. 

__

Waverly paused, very abruptly realizing that she didn’t have anything resembling a plan. Luckily, the footsteps of another horse caused the redhead to look up, searching for the source of the disturbance. Waverly raised an awkward hand in greeting and attempted to smoothly dismount Buttercup, only to lose her footing and stumble as soon as her feet hit the ground.

__

“ _Shit!_ ” Waverly exclaimed as she flung her palms out to break her fall. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the redhead drop her book and scramble to her feet in a flash of colour. She was by Waverly’s side in a moment, dropping back down to her knees beside her.

__

“Oh my god, are you okay?”

__

Her voice was much softer than Waverly had expected. As she sat properly on the ground to assess whether or not she was injured, she took a moment to get a better look at the other woman. She’d taken her red hair down from the braid Waverly had seen earlier in the afternoon, and waves cascaded over her shoulders as she leaned forward to check if Waverly was all right. Her eyes, brown and soft, were wide with concern for the woman who had just fallen right out of the saddle in front of her.

__

“I think I’m fine- _ow!_ ” Waverly yelped as she attempted to move one of her ankles, only to be met with a flash of pain from what was _probably_ a sprain.

__

“Sounds like you might’ve hurt that ankle,” The other woman said, raising her eyebrows slightly in amusement.

__

“I’ll be fine,” Waverly grumbled through gritted teeth. “At least until I get back to the house.”

__

“Need a hand?”

__

The redhead stood up and extended both of her hands out towards Waverly to help her up from the ground. Waverly sheepishly accepted the help, her cheeks flushing pink as she smoothed back a few strands of hair that had come loose from her messy bun. She winced as she tried to put weight on her ankle, but found the shooting pain prevented her from doing so.

__

“D’you need a hand…gettin’ back up there?” The other woman gestured towards Buttercup, her own face flushing slightly.

__

“Shit…” Waverly muttered as she realized she wouldn’t be able to get back on the horse easily. “If you don’t mind…”

__

“Of course.” She smiled reassuringly, a dimple popping out in her left cheek, and offered an arm for Waverly to lean on as she limped around to the other side of her horse.

__

“You’re Gus’s new…ish…hand, aren’t you?” Waverly asked, figuring she should at least introduce herself to the woman she was now leaning on for support.

__

The redhead laughed and nodded. “Been here since February, but yeah. I’m Nicole. And you must be…Waverly? I promise I’m not a creepy stalker or anything,” she added quickly, “Gus just talks about you. A lot.”

__

As Waverly put her right foot in the stirrup, the opposite side she was used to, she was glad to have the extra set of hands helping her keep her balance. Her injured ankle threw her off as she gingerly swung her left leg back into the saddle, and she felt lopsided as she settled with her left foot resting only slightly in the stirrup.

__

“Let me grab my, uh…let me grab the horse and I’ll head back with you.” Nicole said quickly. She picked up the book she’d left under the tree and mounted her own horse quickly, turning back toward Waverly.

__

“We can take it slow going back, yeah?” She said, gesturing towards the path. “Don’t want to jog your ankle or throw you off balance.”

__

Waverly did most of the talking on the ride back to the farm house, finding that it helped take her mind off her now-throbbing ankle. Nicole was quiet as Waverly talked about her courses and her career plan, and Waverly could sense that as she spoke, the other woman was listening intently. She kept her eyes on Waverly as much as possible, and Waverly never once saw her eyes glaze over with disinterest, as was often the case when she got too into the specifics of her history studies. Before she knew it, they were arriving back at the barn.

__

“Careful on that dismount, Earp,” Nicole said in a gentle, teasing tone as she dismounted smoothly and came around to help Waverly off her horse. “Here, I got ya.”

__

As it turned out, getting off the horse was much more of a process. Waverly was able to swing her injured foot back over Buttercup’s back easily enough, but putting even the slightest amount of weight on her ankle proved to be nearly impossible.

__

“ _Sorry!_ ” Waverly yelped as her balance faltered and she fell awkwardly into Nicole’s arms. Her face flushed bright red as she fished her right foot out of the stirrup, aided by Nicole’s strong arms around her, and stabilized herself.

__

“Go sit down,” Nicole said, pointing to a wooden bench beside the open barn door. “I’ll take care of your tack and mine, then we’ll take a look at that ankle. Do you think it’s swelling?”

__

“It probably is,” Waverly said through gritted teeth as she hobbled over to the bench, “My boot’s probably keeping it down.”

__

Nicole worked quickly, and Waverly found herself mesmerized by how easily she was able to lift and hang the heavy saddles, almost as though they weighed nothing at all. When everything was put away and the horses were happily back in their stalls, Nicole offered Waverly her hand once again and helped her limp back to the farm house.

__

Waverly sank into a chair at the kitchen table and removed her riding boot from her good foot before she began to gently work the boot off her injured one. As soon as the boot dropped to the floor with a resounding _clunk_ , Waverly’s brief flash of relief was replaced by an uncomfortable sensation that she knew had to be her ankle swelling up, finally free from its prison. Trying not to move it around too much, Waverly got a proper look at the injury and winced at the swollen ankle.

__

“ _Ouch_.” 

__

Nicole let out a low whistle and Waverly looked up to see that the redhead had returned with supplies to wrap her ankle.

__

“That looks pretty nasty,” She said, pulling up a chair across from Waverly. “There’s even a little bruising right along here…”

__

Nicole’s hands, like her voice, were softer than Waverly was expecting. She was careful not to touch the injury any more than she absolutely had to as she wrapped an elastic bandage securely around it and secured it with two metal clips.

__

“There,” She said, admiring her handiwork. “I’m no doctor, but I’ve done this once or twice myself. You should probably get it checked out tomorrow, though, just to make sure nothing’s broken or torn.”

__

“Girl, what did you _do?_ ”

__

Gus walked into the kitchen just then. Her eyebrows shot up in surprise as she took in the scene at the table.

__

“I had a bit of an _incident_ with one of the horses,” Waverly said sheepishly. “Nicole was just helping me tape up my ankle.”

__

“Looks like she did a pretty good job,” Gus said as she also took a look at Nicole’s handiwork. “I’ll drive you into town in the morning to get that looked at. Nicole, hon, you want to stay for dinner tonight?”

__

“I appreciate the offer, but I really should get going,” Nicole said as she stood up from the table. “Gotta go feed the cat before she takes matters into her own hands.”

__

“She seems nice,” Waverly said quietly once Nicole had closed the door behind her. 

__

“She’s a sweet girl,” Gus said with a quick wink in her niece’s direction. “A little lonely, I think, but she’s a good worker.”

__

“Quick with the first aid, too,” Waverly said with a grin.

__

“I think you two are gonna hit it off.”

__

***

__

Nicole lived in a small house she’d found for rent just up the road from the farm. As she pulled the keys out of the ignition of her truck, she sighed and leaned forward, resting her forehead against the wheel.

__

She _really_ wasn’t prepared for Gus’s niece to be so beautiful.

__

After she and Shae had broken up— _again_ —right before Christmas, Nicole swore to herself that she wasn’t going to get involved with anyone else until she got her act together. She was a different person than she’d been when she’d first met Shae three years ago; Nicole felt like she needed to get to know that person better before she let herself fall for anyone else.

__

Except then Waverly Earp had to go and _literally_ fall off her damn horse.

__

Nicole unlocked her front door and was immediately greeted by Calamity Jane’s irritated meows. She bent over and gave the fluffy ginger cat a quick scratch, trying to push whatever feelings she might have briefly had for Waverly Earp out of her mind.

__

Once Calamity was fed, Nicole turned to her own dinner plans.

__

“Well, shit,” she mumbled to herself as she opened the fridge, where an assortment of condiments, a jar of pickles, and a six-pack of beer stared back at her. “I _knew_ I’d forgotten to do something.”

__

While she waited for the oven to heat up so she could cook the frozen pizza she’d found, Nicole went into the living room. Bypassing the TV, she rifled through her cassettes until she found the one she was looking for. She stuck the tape in her stereo, turned the volume up, and went back to the fridge for a beer.

__

A familiar drum intro rang out in the living room, filling the small space of the first floor.

__

_I know what you're thinking, baby_

_I used to be just like you_

_You move when she's not looking, baby_

_One sugar ain't enough for you_

__

Nicole hummed along with Melissa Etheridge as she sipped her beer and sat down to make a grocery list for the next day. She wondered if she would be running into Waverly often at work; she hadn’t had a chance to ask about the other girl’s summer plans.

__

Just because she’d all but sworn off dating, that didn’t mean she couldn’t still be anxious to get to know Waverly better. 

__

Nicole enjoyed her job and working for Gus, but she would be lying if she said things had been more than a little lonely once the chaos of moving and starting a new job had died down. Calamity Jane, while adorable, was hardly the conversation partner Nicole was looking for.

__

_I like the way you look_

_I know you like me_

_But one and one and one_

_Baby, makes three_

_Stop playing those eyes_

_If you want me to keep_

_Your little secret_

_Little secret, little secret_

_Yeah_

__

Nicole could barely hear the phone ring over the music. She turned down the volume on the stereo before reaching for the handset—she’d forgotten it was Wednesday.

__

She and her older brother talked on the phone every Wednesday night, and they had done so ever since Nicole moved out on her own. They had been close growing up, but grew even closer once Nicole found herself with no money and no place to go at only seventeen years old. 

__

Liam was the only family member who stood by her when she’d been forcibly shoved out of the closet; he had immediately offered her a place to stay, and that act of kindness was the only reason Nicole was able to finish high school. Even though they lived far apart now, Nicole still talked to him every week, always anxious for updates on her five-year-old niece.

__

It didn’t take long for Nicole to bring up the fact that she’d finally gotten to meet Waverly, and she couldn’t help but blush when he let out a loud wolf whistle on the other end.

__

“Don’t you _dare,_ ” she said firmly. “She’s not even gay!”

__

“Isn’t that what you’ve said about…everyone you’ve dated? Literally _everyone?_ ”

__

Nicole just grunted noncommittally. “Whatever. At least she seems nice, and I could use some friends here.”

__

“Look, Nic,” Liam said seriously. “I know you. You’re one of the most respectful people I’ve ever met, but it’s not gonna hurt you to be a little more forward. Plus, who _wouldn’t_ want to get to know you?”

__

“You give me too much credit,” Nicole grumbled. “But thanks. I don’t mind it here, but a little dating _would_ be nice,” she admitted. Nicole quickly changed the subject from her dating life to her niece, wanting to move on as quickly as possible before they got too deep into her dating life. 

__

Cassie would be starting school in the fall, and she was already over-the-moon excited about it. Since it was still early enough in the evening, she got to talk to Cassie herself for a few minutes; she was a very talkative child, and would have easily talked Nicole’s ear off all night if Liam’s girlfriend, Alison, hadn’t intervened, reminding her it was time for bed.

__

***

__

Nicole was up before the sun, as usual, the next morning. She didn’t allow herself to so much as _think_ about Waverly until the cows were fed and hooked up to the milking machines, when she allowed herself a quick break to wolf down breakfast.

__

“Hey, stranger.”

__

Nicole jumped and looked over from where she was seated on the porch to see Waverly standing in the door.

__

“Waverly!” Nicole exclaimed. “How, uh…how’s your ankle?”

__

Surveying the brunette, Nicole could see that her ankle was wrapped up tightly in a very clinical-looking brace that couldn’t be very comfortable.

__

“Pretty nasty, to be honest,” Waverly confirmed with a groan. “If I’m going to have to walk around in this brace, I’m just glad my nails are done,” she added, her cheeks turning the slightest shade of pink. Nicole’s gaze flicked down to see that there was indeed a bright blue pedicure peeking out from beneath the brace.

__

“Looks cute,” Nicole said softly. She grinned, and Waverly felt her stomach do another backflip as she noticed the dimples that appeared in Nicole’s cheek.

__

“I should be inside and staying _off_ of it,” Waverly said, “but I just wanted to say thanks for all your help yesterday. I _swear_ , I know how to ride a horse!” She added with a laugh, “I was just…out of practice, I guess.”

__

“Oh God, don’t apologize!” Nicole exclaimed. “It happens to all of us; I mean, six months ago I dislocated my shoulder because my saddle wasn’t tight enough. Landed right on a patch of ice.” Nicole winced at the memory.

__

Waverly laughed, the sound like the sweetest music to Nicole’s ears.

__

“You should go, uh…get off that foot,” Nicole said, suddenly flustered. She stood up and excused herself hastily, and Waverly found she couldn’t take her eyes off the redhead as she hurried back towards the barn.

__

Much to Waverly’s chagrin, the next person to pull into the driveway was Champ Hardy.

__

She wasn’t exactly _excited_ at the prospect of seeing her high school ex every day, but she understood that her aunt needed the extra set of hands. Even though the summer had barely begun, they already had to start thinking about stockpiling hay for the winter, and for all his shortcomings, apparently Champ was really good at taking care of one of their most important summer crops.

__

Still, that didn’t mean she had to _like_ it.

__

Champ was just as thick-headed as he’d been when Waverly left town for university, and it took all of one afternoon working together for him to start hitting on her again, as though no time at all had passed. He kept talking about “sweeping her off her feet,” then pointing to her wrapped ankle with a stupid grin on his face, as though he thought he’d made some kind of wildly original joke.

__

Mercifully, Nicole had no patience for his attempts at flirtatious procrastination. If she hadn’t already done it by helping her with her sprained ankle, she certainly endeared herself to Waverly with the way she put Champ in his place—often and without hesitation. 

__

Sometimes, after she’d yelled at him for bugging Waverly in the barn, she would turn back over her shoulder and shoot Waverly a quick wink. Waverly’s heart would stutter and her stomach would flip, and she tried not to think _too_ hard about what it might mean for herself. 

__

She had to admit…the extra second of attention felt pretty nice.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Earp sisters drag Nicole out drinking, and friendships start to blossom out under the stars.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW, y'all—I definitely wasn't prepared for the response the first chapter got. I love these nerds, and I'm glad y'all do too! Thanks for coming back for more!
> 
> [This fic has a playlist!](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1XN4lEtTXMKw9vY9y9Mfb5?si=syVKuLOzSeOQhddEYl77Jw)

Even in spite of her injured ankle, it wasn’t long before Waverly found herself back in the farm schedule. 

Nicole had taken over most of Curtis’s responsibilities, which largely meant making sure the dairy cows were looked after. It was a time-consuming job, and Waverly often didn’t cross paths with the redhead more than once or twice a day.

Waverly, on the other hand, split her time between indulging her green thumb in the greenhouses and taking care of their rambunctious herd of goats. Gus made incredible cheese from the milk they produced, but Waverly had somehow convinced her aunt to let her try her hand at expanding their offerings—goat milk was supposed to be great for the skin, so she’d been researching the soapmaking process.

She loved working side-by-side with Gus again, very much the same way she had for so many years growing up.The days were physically exhausting, very different from what had gotten Waverly through school but still almost as satisfying. She did have to admit, it was nice falling into bed at the end of a long day without having to worry about papers to write or vocabulary to memorize. Instead, she was free to spend her days off perusing the health food store, reading what _she_ wanted (for a change), and tweaking her soap formulation until it felt just right.

Lunch quickly proved to be a consistent daily break for Waverly and Nicole, and Waverly welcomed the built-in opportunity for socialization. Most days, they sat outside, enjoying the Alberta summer, and Waverly got to know the redhead who worked alongside her every day.

Or…tried to, at least. 

While she never seemed to run out of questions for Waverly, Nicole was remarkably, almost annoyingly, tight-lipped about herself.

“I’m not that interesting, _really_ ,” Nicole said one afternoon, after Waverly asked again about where she’d come from before settling in Purgatory. “I’m from a tiny town—tinier than Purgatory, I’m not even kidding—and now I’m here. Not much else to say about it.”

“I’m _sure_ that’s not true,” Waverly said. “I grew up in Purgatory, and I think I can say with complete confidence that literally _nobody_ up and decides to move here on a whim.”

Nicole laid back under a shady tree, buying herself some time. She stretched her long body out and groaned as she tried to figure out where to begin, or how much she should even share.

“There’s really not all that much to know about me, Waves,” she said as she clasped her hands behind her head. “I grew up on a farm, stumbled around a whole lot, and somehow ended up here.”

“Did you go to university, or—”

“No.” 

Nicole’s answer was firm as she cut Waverly off. She bit her lip and swallowed nervously before running one hand reflexively through her hair. “I _wanted_ to go, but uh...it wasn’t in the cards for me,” she added quickly.

Heat rose into Nicole’s cheeks as she avoided eye contact with Waverly. She enjoyed the structure and physicality of farm work, but it was never what she wanted to end up doing with her life.

Life, however, had other plans in store for her. She’d had to put her plans on hold and start working the second she graduated from high school, and since then there simply hadn’t been an opportunity for her to stop and reconsider.

Waverly saw the discomfort pass over Nicole’s face and immediately felt guilty.

“I didn’t mean to overstep!” She exclaimed. “Sometimes, I just ask too many questions and don’t realize…”

“It’s okay,” Nicole said quietly. She smiled at the other woman as she started rebraiding her hair. “I guess I’m just kind of…still trying to figure things out, y’know? God, that sounds ridiculous,” she said with a halfhearted laugh. “26 years old and _still_ figuring it out.”

Waverly groaned and buried her face in her hands. “Honestly, I just spent five years working my ass off and I don’t know _what_ I’m gonna do now. So believe me, it’s really not all it’s cracked up to be. But if you _had_ gone…” Waverly asked tentatively, “…what do you think you would’ve studied?”

Nicole let out a nervous laugh and paused to consider her answer. She couldn’t remember the last time someone asked her about what she might want to study. Not that she had many people asking, and she much preferred to keep it that way—she’d found that it was easier to keep her ideas and passions close to her chest, since there was less chance anyone would judge her.

“I guess…I don’t know, really,” Nicole said slowly. “I was so excited to get out of town and just start…trying things, I guess. I thought about psychology, or philosophy, or something that would, I don’t know…help people?” 

Waverly watched as Nicole’s hands stilled and her eyes fell to her lap. She smiled softly to herself as her voice trailed off, dimples appearing in her cheeks. 

“I guess I just wanted…anything more than what I grew up with, y’know? Ironically, I didn’t want to get stuck doing what I’d grown up doing.” 

Nicole shrugged indifferently in an attempt to offset how sad the words felt coming out of her mouth.

Waverly sighed. “I get that. Before going away for school, I’d barely ever left Purgatory. I mean, I had such a hard time choosing a major that I took summer courses for two years _just_ so I could take more. Couldn’t decide between Latin or Greek, so I took them both” she added with a sheepish smile.

“ _Wow_ ,” Nicole said with a low whistle. “You really _are_ a genius, eh? Gus wasn’t kidding!” 

She grinned impishly and watched as Waverly stumbled over her words, face turning redder and redder as she fished for a comeback. All Nicole could do was laugh, only feeling the tiniest bit guilty for flustering the other woman so completely.

***

Waverly was enjoying a lazy late-morning cup of coffee, enjoying her Saturday morning, when she saw a familiar blue-and-white truck pull into the driveway. Dark hair flowing wildly behind her, Waverly’s older sister stumbled out of the driver’s seat and into the driveway.

“Isn’t it a little early for you to be up and about?” Waverly called, grinning cheerfully as her sister only glowered in her direction

Wynonna grumbled something incoherent as she stomped up the porch steps, planting a kiss on her sister’s forehead before continuing on into the house. She emerged again several minutes later with her own mug in hand and leaned against the porch railing facing Waverly.

“So.”

“So?” Waverly repeated, raising her eyebrows at her sister.

“Where the fuck have you _been,_ baby girl?! You’ve been back in town for almost a month, and I’ve seen you…once? You haven’t even seen my new place yet!”

Waverly rolled her eyes at the teasing note in Wynonna’s voice. Her sister had moved back to Purgatory not long before Waverly, moving into the apartment above Shorty’s Saloon. As far as Waverly knew, the nights that Wynonna didn’t spend slinging drinks behind the bar were spent drinking it dry, so it made sense to Waverly that she would end up living where she could just drunkenly stumble upstairs at the end of the night.

“I’m just tired, Wynonna,” Waverly said. “The other night, I passed out _sitting up_ on the living room couch. I still smelled like goats!”

Wynonna smirked as she slurped her coffee loudly.

“ _Well_ ,” she began slowly, drawing out the word dramatically. “You _could_ make it up to me by coming out to the bar tonight. Might loosen you up a little.”

Waverly paused and smiled as she considered her sister’s offer. “That…might actually be fun. I could see if Nicole wants to come along.”

“Who?”

“Gus’s new hand?”

“Oh right, her. I’ve seen her around; every time I’ve stopped by since she started she’s been working like a maniac. You sure she’s not a _robot_?”

“ _Wynonna_!” Waverly exclaimed. “She’s not a robot! She just keeps to herself, that’s all. Plus,” she added quietly, “I want to get to know her better.”

Wynonna shrugged. “Whatever gets you off the farm, baby girl. Just be there at 8, got it?”

***

Nicole was lounging in her backyard, dozing lightly in the hammock she’d strung up between two trees the second the temperature had warmed up enough.

There was a slight breeze rustling through the trees, and just as Nicole felt her book begin to drop into her lap again, she heard the sound of a vehicle pulling into the driveway.

“The hell…?” Nicole mumbled to herself as she extracted herself from the hammock, foregoing her sandals, and walked around the house to see who could possibly be in her front yard.

A familiar red Jeep was parked in the driveway, top off, Waverly Earp in the driver’s seat.

“Waves?”

Waverly jumped, not ready for her to appear out of nowhere. She looked around at Nicole, caramel-coloured waves whipping around to hit her in the face. Nicole smiled as the other woman very quickly exited the Jeep and walked to meet her where she stood, barefoot, on the lawn.

“What’s up?” Nicole asked, eyeing Waverly quizzically. “Did something happen at work?”

“Oh, no! Nothing’s wrong,” Waverly said quickly. “Wynonna’s dragging me out to Shorty’s tonight, and I was just wondering if you might want to join us? I didn’t know your phone number…” 

Waverly’s voice trailed off, and she shrugged nonchalantly. 

Nicole’s pulse quickened slightly at the thought of spending an evening with the youngest Earp sister, even if Wynonna would be there as well.

“S-sure,” Nicole stammered. “I’d love that. What should I, uh…wear?”

“Great!” Waverly exclaimed. “You don’t have to dress up or anything, whatever you’re comfortable in!”

With an obvious new spring in her step, Waverly went back to the Jeep, giving Nicole a little wave before starting the car and pulling out of Nicole’s driveway. Nicole couldn’t help but grin as she watched the red Jeep drive back down the road in the direction of the farm.

Once Waverly turned the corner, Nicole sighed deeply. She’d been to Shorty’s once or twice since she moved to Purgatory, but there was definitely a reason she preferred to drink at home.

It was more comfortable that way.

Nicole could tell from her attitude behind the bar that Waverly’s sister was a force to be reckoned with, but she hadn’t actually exchanged more than a few words with the older Earp. It didn’t matter _who_ was behind the bar, however, once the men of Purgatory had gotten a few drinks in them.

Even in spite of her best efforts to dress down and generally appear all but invisible, Nicole still found herself falling under the wandering gaze of any number of town idiots. They never quite seemed to grasp the fact that she wasn’t interested in them, and Nicole _certainly_ wasn’t all too thrilled with the idea of letting them know that she was not, in fact, into men at all.

Going out with the Earps sounded much more her speed—there would be much less pressure that way.

***

Waverly and Wynonna scored a coveted corner booth early in the night (one of the perks of being the bartender’s baby sister), but that also meant they wouldn’t exactly be easy to spot. As the bar filled up with the usual Saturday night crowd, Waverly kept an eye out for Nicole, and Wynonna seized the opportunity to tease her younger sister.

“You sure seem excited, baby girl,” Wynonna said, smirking over the rim of her whiskey glass. “Awfully excited to hang out with a _coworker_.”

Nicole, on the other hand, was easy to spot. Her vibrant red hair fell loosely over her shoulders, and she was dressed simply in a pair of cuffed jeans and a loose-fitting white shirt that she’d tucked in loosely at the waist. Waverly watched as she looked around the room, eyes searching for familiar faces, and ran a hand through her hair before heading in the direction of the bar.

“That her?” Wynonna asked, following Waverly’s line of sight to where the redhead was waiting to order a drink. “Get her over here! And grab me another drink while you’re at it,” she called as Waverly slid out of the booth and started shoving her way through the crowd to the bar.

“Nicole!”

The redhead turned around from the bar when she heard her name. She met Waverly’s eyes and grinned, dimples standing out, as she raised a hand in greeting.

“We’ve got a booth over in the corner,” Waverly said. “Wait for me a minute? Wynonna demanded I come back with another round.”

Instead of yelling to make herself heard over the loud music of the bar, Waverly leaned in slightly as she spoke, resting a hand on Nicole’s arm as she did so. The casual contact was warm and gentle, and as she pulled back she smiled, which lit up her entire face.

Waverly ordered drinks for herself and Wynonna, and Nicole followed her back to where Wynonna was waiting impatiently. Nicole watched as Wynonna downed half her drink in one long gulp before actually introducing herself properly.

Nicole sat back and sipped her own drink quietly as she watched the Earp sisters resume a conversation they’d clearly been in the middle of when she’d arrived, albeit with the occasional slurred word or tipsy hand gesture thrown in. Their conversation was interrupted, however, when the unmistakable beat of a Spice Girls song filled the bar and Waverly let out a tipsy squeal of delight.

“I love this song!” She cried. 

“C’mon baby girl, let’s go _dance!_ ” Wynonna yelled, quickly draining the last of her drink. “You too, Haught!” She added loudly.

Wynonna gestured for Nicole to follow them, and Waverly grabbed her hand in an attempt to get her out of the booth, but Nicole stayed firmly put.

“No way!” Nicole exclaimed with a laugh. “I’m…I’m _really_ not much of a dancer! I’ll hold down the booth, but you go!”

Watching Waverly get dragged out onto the dance floor by her sister, Nicole felt the smile fade from her face. The Earp sisters had had no trouble attracting lots of male attention, and within seconds there was no shortage of men clamouring for a dance. Nicole, on the other hand, had been actively dodging suggestive glances from one particular guy at the bar the entire night, and once Wynonna and Waverly left, she noticed him stand up from his spot at the bar and finally begin making his way towards her.

“Shit…” she grumbled as she drained the last of her drink, not seeing any way to avoid the unwanted encounter currently walking toward her. He was dressed in shorts and a Nirvana t-shirt, and Nicole could smell the cologne on him from six feet away.

“Haven’t seen you ‘round here before,” he slurred as he sidled up to the booth where Nicole was now sitting alone. “I’m Carl.”

Nicole sighed and rolled her eyes. “Saturday night Shorty’s isn’t usually my thing,” she said loudly.

“C’mon, Red, let’s dance,” Carl said, reaching out to grab Nicole’s hand. Nicole yanked it away and shot him what she hoped was a withering glare. “Oh c’mon, jus’ one dance isn’t gonna kill ya,” he added.

Nicole closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose, willing herself not to punch the asshole trying to put his hands on her. “Y’know what? It just might,” she said sharply, sliding out of the booth past Carl.

As she attempted to make a break for the exit, a sweaty hand clamped down on her forearm—a bad move on his part. Nicole’s hand collided with Carl’s cheek so fast, she had already begun weaving through the crowd to get to the exit by the time he realized what had just happened.

“Y’know, if you were a _dyke_ you coulda just said so!” Nicole heard him call after her. 

She didn’t turn around to acknowledge him, but the harsh insult reverberated in Nicole’s head as the door of Shorty’s swung shut behind her. She took a couple deep breaths, pausing to appreciate the quiet night air, before pulling a mostly-empty pack of cigarettes from her back pocket and lighting one up. 

Nicole didn’t smoke often; for the most part she only got the urge when she was feeling stressed out or anxious, and she certainly felt that getting called a dyke in public was stressful enough to justify a smoke.

“Nicole?”

She turned around to see Waverly standing by the door, arms crossed against her chest. She’d pulled her long hair back into a loose, casual ponytail, and was staring at Nicole intently, like she was trying to analyze her.

“Oh, hey,” Nicole said quietly. “Sorry about…this,” she added, holding up the lit cigarette in her hand. “I promise I don’t do it often; it’s, uh…kind of an anxiety thing.” She closed her eyes as she took a deep drag; the nicotine immediately worked its magic, and between the smoke and Waverly’s presence she felt her blood pressure drop a few points.

Waverly just waved away Nicole’s explanation, not as concerned about the smoking itself as she was about what had apparently triggered it. “Everything okay?” she asked. “I saw Carl swoop in, then next thing I knew you were practically running out of the bar.” She stepped closer to Nicole and rested a hand on her arm.

Nicole sighed as she expelled the smoke from her lungs. “Yeah, everything’s fine. I guess…I overreacted a little.” She avoided Waverly’s gaze by dropping her own to the place where Waverly’s hand was still resting on her arm. The night air was cool around them, but Nicole’s skin was pleasantly warm beneath the other woman’s touch.

“I don’t think you overreacted at all. I mean, Carl’s an asshole,” Waverly said matter-of-factly, which drew a small laugh from Nicole. “And I…heard what he yelled as you walked away,” she added quietly. “That _really_ wasn’t okay.”

“So I’m guessing the entire bar heard him, then?”

Waverly wrinkled her nose sympathetically. “Yeah. Sorry, Nicole.”

“Yeah, well…”

Nicole wasn’t planning on having _this_ conversation so soon, but she thought she might as well get it over with. She leaned against the cool brick wall and took another drag off her cigarette to buy herself time.

“Well…?” Waverly prompted, leaning against the wall beside her. Nicole smiled at the slight teasing note in Waverly’s voice and rolled her eyes at the other girl.

“I don’t usually go out to bars like this, not gonna lie,” Nicole said quietly. “I’m not a hermit or anything; I just never quite feel like I can be…myself.”

“How so?” Waverly asked. She thought she knew what Nicole was going to tell her, but she didn’t want the other woman to feel pressured into revealing more than she felt comfortable. Purgatory _was_ a small town, after all, and Alberta a conservative place.

“Honestly?” Nicole began, “I’ve only been here a couple times—including tonight—because every time, some guy like Carl has aggressively tried to get in my pants. And I, uh…don’t _want_ them in my pants…because I’m a lesbian.” 

Nicole winced at how awkward she sounded as she blurted it out.

There certainly were better ways to come out, but Waverly Earp made her flustered on a _normal_ day. At least she had the cover of darkness to hide her burning face.

“I’m sorry if we pressured you into coming out with us,” Waverly said quietly. “Honestly I was just kind of hoping that we would get a chance to talk tonight, because I really do want to get to know you better. _Outside_ of work.” She smiled, eyes crinkling adorably at the corners, and Nicole felt herself relax just slightly.

“So, you’re not…freaked out or anything?” Nicole asked.

“Of course not!” Waverly exclaimed. “Did I give off the impression that I…might be?” She added slowly, her eyes widening in what could only be described as horror.

Nicole sighed deeply and took another drag off her cigarette to buy herself a moment to come up with her answer.

“No…I don’t think so,” Nicole concluded with a long exhale. “But it’s not always easy to tell.”

It was always easier for Nicole to be overly cautious. There was less chance she would be disappointed…or worse.

“Honestly, Nicole?”

Waverly’s voice derailed Nicole’s train of thought before it could get going too fast. 

“Yeah?”  
  


“I kind of…guessed.”

Waverly winked, and Nicole burst out laughing. The last of the tension in her body fell away as Waverly laughed along with her, and Nicole was left with an overwhelming sense of relief.

“Y’know, I’ve only had the one drink; d’you want to get out of here?” Nicole asked as she stubbed out the last of her cigarette in a nearby ashtray. “We can keep drinking, just less…sweatily. Plus, I’ve got a pretty great backyard.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Waverly said with a grin. “Lead the way.”

***

As soon as she walked through the front door, Nicole kicked her boots off with a relieved groan.

“ _That’s_ better,” she sighed. “Now, I know there’s a bottle of whiskey hiding around here somewhere…” She headed for the kitchen in a search for alcohol, and Waverly took in the neat interior of the small house.

Specifically, the bookshelf.

Waverly was immediately drawn to the packed bookshelf that sat beside Nicole’s TV in the living room, and she moved closer so she could get a better look at the titles.

“I haven’t heard of a lot of these,” Waverly said quietly, not sure if Nicole could even hear her. She turned to look over her shoulder and saw Nicole standing with a bottle of whiskey in her hand. “A lot of these sound really good,” Waverly said, a little louder this time.

“A lot of those are by, uh…gay authors,” Nicole said quietly, a small smile spreading across her face. “But I’m sure you read _way_ more than I have,” Nicole said, “so I bet you’ve got loads of recommendations.”

“Oh, always!” Waverly exclaimed. “Though I think I’m gonna have to pick your brain about a lot of these…”

“Well, you’re welcome to borrow anything that sounds interesting,” Nicole said. “C’mon, let’s go out back,” she added, gesturing to the door that led out to the porch. “You can tell me all about what you’re reading right now.”

Nicole and Waverly spent the rest of the night passing a bottle of whiskey back and forth on Nicole’s back porch. Light from the house illuminated just enough of the backyard so they could see what they were doing, but not so much that it drowned out the stars.

As she got increasingly more drunk (which, surprisingly, didn’t take long), Nicole’s entire demeanour got much lighter and a little sillier. She laughed, fully and loudly, at the slightest provocation, a sound that rang out clear as a bell in the summer night.

Talking to her was _easy_ , and Waverly had never met anyone who listened to her so intently and asked her so many questions. Even hammered on whiskey, Nicole was attentive and interested.

Waverly didn’t want to pry too much into Nicole’s personal life, but the haze of alcohol still made her much bolder than she might ordinarily be, and she found that she had one very important thing she needed to get off her chest.

“ _Nicole_.” Waverly said very seriously, leaning in close to the redhead and resting a hand on her knee. “I’m _sooo_ glad you trusted me. Y’know, with…all that stuff earlier.”

Nicole grinned and felt herself blush.

“There’s somethin’ special about you, Waves,” she said, slurring her words slightly. “Not everybody’s so…cool about this. Y’know?”

Nicole’s words hung in the air between them, and Nicole hoped she hadn’t freaked Waverly out. Now, drunk and barely out of the closet, wouldn’t be a great time to accidentally let slip that she might be developing a crush on the woman sitting two feet away from her.

What she wasn’t expecting was for Waverly to, in one quick movement, slide over on the porch step and fling her arms around Nicole’s neck in a hug. Still holding the whiskey in one hand, Nicole wrapped her other arm around Waverly and they fell quiet.

Waverly sniffed, not sure where this sudden rush of emotion was coming from. Nicole’s arms were strong around her, and Waverly wasn’t sure anything had ever felt so confusing and overwhelming and _right_ all at the same time.

“Hey, Waves…you okay?” Nicole asked softly.

“God…I’m sorry,” Waverly said as she went back to her original spot on the steps. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

“There’s nothin’ to be sorry for,” Nicole said quietly. “I’m here for you. No matter…what it is.” 

She checked her watch and saw that it was well after two in the morning. “How ‘bout we go inside and go to sleep?” Nicole stood up and, after pausing to get her balance, offered her hand out to Waverly to help her up.

Before Nicole could even offer up her bedroom, Waverly stumbled into the living room and flopped down on the couch.

“You _sure_ you want to sleep there?” Nicole said, laughing at the image in front of her. 

It had taken Waverly all of thirty seconds to make herself a nest. She’d wrapped herself up in a throw blanket and snuggled deep into the couch, which Nicole had to admit was a pretty great sleeping couch.

Waverly just made a small noise of contentment, and Nicole took that to mean she would in fact be sleeping on the couch for the night. Nicole went upstairs to change into a pair of pajama shorts before she slipped out the back door again, blanket and pillow in hand.

Cool and clear, the weather was perfect for sleeping outside, and it only took Nicole a few minutes to fall asleep to the gentle rocking motions of the hammock.

Nicole woke the next morning as the sun rose, sleepily attempting to bury her face in her blanket before remembering that she’d slept outside, so there would be no escaping the sun. She less-than-gracefully rolled out of the hammock and slipped her sandals on, squinting at the early morning light, and gathered her bedding up in her arms before heading back inside.

During the night, Waverly had managed to burrow even deeper into the couch than Nicole thought possible. The brunette had pulled her blanket up so far that all Nicole could see were her eyes and nose, and she grinned at the sight. Nicole yawned widely and realized she wasn’t _quite_ ready to wake up for the day yet.

“Mmmmh…”

A small groan from the couch startled Nicole, and she looked over to see Waverly stretching out, a sleepy smile on her face.

“What’re you doin up?” Waverly mumbled.

“Slept outside,” Nicole said, her voice coming out low and gravelly. “Go back to sleep, Waves.”

Grinning, Nicole watched as Waverly mumbled something barely coherent and pulled the blanket up over her face. She yawned again and wrapped her blanket around her shoulders as she climbed the stairs to her bedroom, where she sprawled out like a starfish and immediately passed out again.

***

Nicole didn’t realize how anxious she’d actually been about coming out to Waverly until she…came out to Waverly.

Now that that was taken care of, she was surprised by how much easier it was to simply go about her daily chores. Even having _one_ person to confide in made her feel less alone in a place where she still barely knew anyone.

There was something that seemed different about Waverly as well. She’d expressed nothing that indicated she might be anything other than straight, but there was a marked difference in how she interacted with Nicole now. It almost seemed as though she was… _more_ relaxed.

_That_ was a first. Straight girls almost never reacted that way—if anything, they nearly always grew distant and awkward, which was why Nicole all but stopped trying to have deep conversations with them in the first place.

Nicole approached Waverly the next Friday after their night out at Shorty’s, once she had hung her tack up in the barn. The brunette was in the smaller goat barn, her back to the open door where Nicole was standing.

“Hey, Waves!”

“ _Jesus—_ ”

Waverly yelped in surprise and whipped around to face Nicole.

_“Nicole!_ Don’t do that! _”_

Nicole laughed loudly; Waverly’s surprised expression was adorable enough that she nearly forgot _why_ she’d shown up in the goat barn in the first place.

“Sorry, Waves, I just didn’t think you would _jump_ like that!” 

Waverly narrowed her eyes in Nicole’s direction, and Nicole burst into another fit of giggles at just how non-intimidating she was.

“ _Anyway_ …what’s up?”

Nicole brought a hand up to the end of her tight braid and slipped the tie off the bottom. “I’ve, uh…got a couple bottles of wine at home, and it’s supposed to be pretty nice out tonight…if you want to do something?” 

Why she was so nervous, she had no clue. It wasn’t like she was asking Waverly out on a _date_. To give her anxious hands something to occupy themselves with, she began to unweave her hair while she waited for Waverly to answer.

“ _Shoot_ ,” Waverly hissed, scrunching up her entire face in displeasure for a brief second. “I promised Wynonna we’d meet up at Shorty’s later. You could come meet us, if you want!”

Nicole’s shoulders tensed up and her hands stopped moving. She swallowed hard and tried not to let it show on her face that she’d rather do anything else.

“I don’t think I can, Waves,” she said quietly. “It’s not that I don’t like your sister or… _having fun_ , but…”

But she couldn’t help the anxiety that began flooding her system at the idea of putting herself in that situation again so soon. Her heart was starting to pound a deafening, anxious rhythm in her ears, leaving her lightheaded.

“Hey…”

Waverly stepped forward and rested a hand gently on Nicole’s shoulder. “You know Shorty’s is safe, right?” Waverly said softly. “And that Wynonna would _never_ let anyone mess with you? Especially since it is _her_ bar and all.”

“Even so,” Nicole sighed, “last weekend just…threw me for a loop.” The panic in Nicole’s eyes didn’t go away, and Waverly got that feeling again that there was more to the story. “I’m sorry, Waves, I just...I _can’t_.”

_Can’t._

Waverly heard the uncertainty, saw Nicole’s eyes dart away and back again, and decided to drop it.

***

The hot water of the shower hit Nicole’s shoulders a little differently on Friday nights. A handful of part-time summer workers—mostly university students home for the summer—came in on the weekends, a welcome departure from the winter months when Nicole had been up before dawn to feed cattle seven days a week. Fridays during the summer meant a long, hot shower before a weekend with no outside obligations.

She only felt a _little_ guilty about flaking out on Waverly and Wynonna…but not _that_ guilty.

Once Nicole had dressed in a pair of sweatpants and a black tank, she picked up the stack of takeout menus she kept in the middle of her small kitchen table and shuffled through them. She always flipped through the stack, in spite of the fact that Friday was pizza night.

She had barely picked up the kitchen extension to dial when there was a knock on the door so sudden, it caused Nicole to drop the receiver on the floor.

“I’m _coming!_ ” She shouted as her impatient guest knocked again. " _Jesus_ ,” she hissed as she opened the front door.

“Nope, not Jesus.”

Wynonna and Waverly were standing on her front porch, clearly still dressed for a night out.

“What’re you guys…doing here?” Nicole asked, confused.

“We’re taking pity on you!” Wynonna exclaimed. 

“ _HEY!_ ” 

Waverly punched her sister in the arm. “I was bummed you couldn’t join us,” she said with a shrug, “so I convinced Wynonna to ditch Shorty’s and come over here instead.”

“I even brought my own whiskey,” Wynonna added with a smug smile, producing a bottle seemingly out of thin air.

“Is that okay?” Waverly asked. “I mean, I don’t want to bother you—”

“No! You’re not bothering me at _all_ ; I think it’s great,” Nicole said, a grin spreading across her face. “I was just about to order pizza.”

Nicole lit a fire in the backyard while they waited for dinner to arrive, in the pit she’d cobbled together out of a handful of secondhand cinderblocks. She went back inside to find Wynonna rummaging through her kitchen cabinets for something to drink out of. As she watched, the older Earp, completely unaware of her presence, pulled three mismatched coffee mugs from a cabinet and poured a generous amount of whiskey into each one.

“ _Fuck_ , Haught!” She exclaimed when she turned around and saw Nicole. “Wear a _bell_ or something!”

With a roll of her eyes, Nicole accepted the whiskey from Wynonna.

“Well maybe you shouldn’t be going through my stuff, eh?” Nicole said with a smirk.

Wynonna rolled her eyes playfully and clinked the rim of her mug against Nicole’s own before taking a big swig. 

Taking a second mug in her hands, Nicole shepherded Wynonna out the back door, to where Waverly was already bundled up in the backyard. Nicole grinned at the sight; Waverly had settled herself in a camp chair by the fire, wrapped up in a throw blanket she’d plucked from the living room. She reached out for the mug Nicole offered with a dazzling smile, and Nicole was grateful for the cover of semi-darkness that hid her blush.

Waverly stopped paying attention to her sister for thirty seconds while she ducked inside to use the washroom, and it took exactly twenty-nine of those seconds for Wynonna to bait Nicole into a ridiculous argument. She returned to find her sister and Nicole yelling at each other over the fire; Wynonna was crouched awkwardly in her own chair while Nicole stood and faced her.

“There wasn’t room on that door _and you know it!_ ” Nicole yelled, gesticulating so wildly that it looked like her drink was in danger of spilling.

“ _Lies and slander!_ ”

“Uh, guys…?”

Waverly’s voice caused them both to look up midargument. “Wynonna, I was gone for a _minute!_ ”

“And this is the single most important debate of our time!” Wynonna exclaimed.

“Oh my God…” Waverly groaned. “Wynonna, that movie came out almost a _year_ ago!”

“ _And?!_ ”

Waverly sighed in defeat and sank down in her chair as Wynonna and Nicole resumed their bickering. She’d had to listen to Wynonna have this exact argument with all three of her roommates after they’d seen _Titanic_ together in the city, but she had to admit she’d never been quite so entertained by this ridiculous debate.

They barely knew each other, but Wynonna and Nicole were arguing as though they’d been friends for years. It felt like a good omen…though an omen of what, Waverly had no idea.

***

After another round of drinks over their dinner, Wynonna yawned widely and suggested it might be time for her to head home for the evening.

“So soon?” Waverly asked quietly, wrapping her blanket a little tighter around her shoulders.

“She’s more fun than I gave her credit for. Haught, I mean,” Wynonna said. She looked back towards the house where Nicole had made herself busy taking care of their plates, then back at her sister. “She seems…different.”

“What’s _that_ supposed to mean?” Waverly asked, furrowing her brow in confusion.

“I’m just _saying_ ,” Wynonna drawled. “I know I might be Purgatory’s craziest, but it feels like there’s something…here. Between the two of you. And before you get upset, baby girl, you can’t deny that there’s definitely some energy here.”

Waverly just stared at her sister, mouth agape.

Her older sister had been in and out of her life for years, but they’d always seemed to be on the same wavelength. Waverly had barely entertained the idea _herself_ that she might be feeling something stronger than friendship towards the redhead, but yet her sister had still somehow picked up on that energy. 

Maybe Waverly wasn’t crazy after all.

“Now, I’m gonna head back to my bar and make sure Henry’s holding down the fort,” Wynonna said, abruptly interrupting Waverly’s train of thought. “Because I’ve got some plans of my own I’d like to keep…if you know what I mean.”

Waverly rolled her eyes as her sister stood up and kissed her forehead before going back inside the house.

“Heading out already?” Nicole asked, turning around at the sound of her back door opening. “Is Waverly—”

“She’s gonna stick around a little longer; I’ve just got some stuff to take care of down at the bar,” Wynonna said. She tried to get in to rinse out her own mug, but Nicole plucked it from her hands before she could.

“I got it.”

“This was fun, Haught,” Wynonna said with an uncharacteristically soft smile. “We should do it again sometime.”

“Hey, did Waverly tell you…anything? About tonight?” Nicole asked, not wanting to meet Wynonna’s eyes.

“Not really. She just said you weren’t in the mood for the bar,” Wynonna said. “Sorry about what happened last week, by the way,” she added quietly. “That asshole hasn’t shown his face since, but next time he does—”

“Don’t.” Nicole said firmly. “He didn’t actually _do_ anything. I’m just trying to keep my head down, y’know? It’s not worth drawing more attention to.”

Wynonna narrowed her eyes at the tired-looking redhead, but before she could open her mouth to say anything, she was interrupted by the sound of the back door opening. Waverly was standing there, suddenly drenched to the skin and smiling sheepishly.

“S-storm rolled in outta nowhere,” Waverly said, teeth chattering.

Nicole offered to throw Waverly’s clothes in the dryer and poured them both another drink while they waited. As Waverly settled herself on one end of Nicole’s couch, drink in hand, she noticed a book turned upside down on the coffee table that hadn’t been there the week before.

“New book?” She asked, curious.

“ _This?_ ”

Nicole plopped down on the other end of the couch, picking up the book and properly marking her place before she turned it over in her hands. “ _Hell_ no. This is probably my favourite book.”

“ _Fried Green Tomatoes…_ that sounds familiar. Did they make it into a movie?”

Nicole’s face lit up. “ _Yes!_ ”

“So you liked it then?” Waverly said with a laugh. “I haven’t seen it.”

“I mean, if you’re not _opposed…_ ” Nicole began slowly. “I’ve got the tape hiding out right under the TV…”

“Put it in!”

Nicole quickly produced a well-worn VHS tape and Waverly snuggled into the couch once again, drink clutched in her hand and ready to experience what was clearly one of Nicole’s favourite movies. 

The thunderstorm that had rolled in so suddenly continued to rage outside, but Nicole’s living room was cozy. She enjoyed watching out of the corner of her eye as Nicole sank lower and lower into the couch; as the movie played, she gradually descended from a cross-legged sitting position until she was practically stretched out across the length of the couch, long legs encroaching on Waverly’s space.

At some point well into the movie, Nicole’s excited chatter about the differences between the book vs. the movie trailed off into silence, and Waverly realized she’d dozed off at the other end of the couch. She smiled softly and slowly repositioned herself so Nicole could stretch out fully, legs in Waverly’s lap. Once she woke up, Nicole apologized profusely for invading Waverly’s space, but Wavrely reassured her over and over that it was _fine_.

It was more than fine.

It was _right_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks a MILLION to [Blankagenda](https://twitter.com/Blankagenda) for being so patient and reading this over entirely too many times!
> 
> [This fic has a playlist!](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1XN4lEtTXMKw9vY9y9Mfb5?si=syVKuLOzSeOQhddEYl77Jw)
> 
> Please come yell at me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/unsaltysaltines)!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Gibson Farm crew takes the farmers' market by storm.
> 
> And maybe some gay stuff happens.
> 
> Told y'all I wasn't good with the "slow" burn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back, and welcome to the gay!!
> 
> [This fic has a playlist!](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1XN4lEtTXMKw9vY9y9Mfb5?si=OYjz5qsZQAee2AlUapuNBA)

When Waverly had dragged her along to the first week of the summer market, Nicole was expecting a few sad tables and a handful of townspeople. What she wasn’t expecting, however, was a bustling marketplace that featured farms and businesses from all over Ghost River County, not just Purgatory.

And once Waverly Earp took over their farmers’ market operation, business exploded. 

While Nicole largely kept to the background, she observed as Waverly chatted animatedly with anyone who stopped by. It was amazing to watch; Waverly knew nearly _everyone,_ and there wasn’t a single person in town who didn’t absolutely adore her.

Though Nicole couldn’t say she blamed them. Even on days that were less-than-stellar, Waverly’s smile and laugh seemed to light up everything around her. Nicole loved listening to her as they worked, and happily let Waverly run the cash register.

Champ came along for the first couple weeks of the market, but Nicole was anxious to shake him once she realized he was really only there for his muscle, instead of anything useful. She could only put up with his whining for a handful of mornings before she decided enough was enough.

“I swear to _God_ , Hardy,” Nicole hissed as she pushed him out of the way so she could get into the truck, “I’m not gonna take you with us anymore. I mean it!”

“Well who’s gonna set up the tent then?” Champ snapped— _whined_ , really—before he crossed his arms and plastered a pout on his face. Nicole was amazed by how much he resembled an overgrown toddler, and she made a mental note to ask Waverly how on earth she’d ever managed to put up with him.

“I mean, last I _checked_ , Champ,” Nicole began slowly, not breaking eye contact with him as she rolled the sleeves of her t-shirt up past her shoulders, “I can handle heavy things just fine. Waverly too.”

From her vantage point several feet away, Waverly couldn’t hear what Nicole and Champ were arguing about, but she felt heat rush to her cheeks all the same as she watched Nicole very, _very_ deliberately roll up her sleeves to make her point…whatever it was. She hated it when Champ showed off his biceps—which he made sure to every chance he got—but watching Nicole show him up with her _own_ was…something else _entirely_.

_Champ’s probably trying to convince her we need his muscle,_ she thought. _And Nicole’s not having it one bit._

Working with her ex-boyfriend in such close proximity was getting on Waverly’s nerves. He’d decided that working together again automatically gave him a license to try hitting on Waverly at every possible moment, and it was driving her up the wall. She was truly starting to wonder what it was she’d _ever_ seen in him—there had even been about thirty seconds, when she was sixteen, where she thought she might end up _marrying_ him, and Waverly had to wonder if she’d been out of her goddamn mind.

As Champ stormed away from Nicole in a huff, Waverly watched as Nicole tucked her sleeves securely and smirked, clearly pleased with herself. The morning sunlight cast the slightest of shadows over Nicole’s strong arms, highlighting the definition in her muscles. She glanced over in Waverly’s direction, and Waverly quickly made herself busy fixing the sign that hung from their stall.

“Need some help?”

Waverly nearly fell off her stepstool as Nicole approached, hoping the other woman hadn’t seen her staring.

“Yeah, can you help me get this sign…straight?” Waverly swallowed awkwardly. “Just, uh, stand back and let me know if it’s crooked?”

Nicole grinned as she took a couple steps back to survey the sign Waverly was so intent on adjusting. The brunette’s cheeks were noticeably pinker as she busied herself, and Nicole thought her suspicions might, in fact, be correct. She didn’t _need_ to show Champ up quite so dramatically to prove her point, but she had noticed that Waverly’s gaze kept flickering over to her whenever she _thought_ Nicole might not be looking…so there was nothing wrong with making a show of things.

As Waverly adjusted the sign, Nicole couldn’t help but notice her already-cropped t-shirt ride up underneath the overalls that she’d cut into shorts. Caramel coloured waves cascaded over her shoulders, held back loosely in a half-ponytail, and Nicole was so distracted by the way the sun shone on the blonde highlights that Waverly had to ask three more times if the sign was straight. 

“Wha… _OH_ , yeah, it’s straight,” Nicole said quickly. She shook her head to snap herself back to reality and took a couple steps forward to offer Waverly help climbing down.

“Thanks,” Waverly said. She suddenly felt bashful as she took the hand Nicole offered and stepped down carefully. “What was Champ going on about back there, anyway?”

Nicole rolled her eyes and laughed. “He was insisting that if we didn’t bring him to the market anymore, we’d just be _lost_ without him. So I just…reminded him that not only can you and I _both_ drive the truck, but we’re _also_ just as capable of lifting heavy things as he is. Probably more so.”

“So does that mean…we’re gonna be shot of him for the rest of the season?” Waverly asked hopefully.

“I think so,” Nicole said. “I don’t think he’ll mind having a bonus morning to sleep in.”

“Doesn’t matter why,” Waverly said, “However you convinced him, I think we’re _definitely_ better off. Can’t complain about one less day a week where he tries to get back into my pants.”

Nicole rolled her eyes in solidarity. She would be lying if she said she hadn’t been painfully aware of Champ’s awkward attempts to flirt…when he was supposed to be working. In fact, Nicole had just yelled at him that very week to stop messing around and leave Waverly alone; he’d been hanging around the greenhouse bothering her when he _should_ have been helping Nicole finish feeding before they got walloped by a nasty thunderstorm.

“Looks like it’s gonna be a busy day,” Nicole said, changing the subject before she slipped up and made her own intentions a little too clear. She cleared her throat and rubbed the back of her neck, looking away from the brunette quickly toward where other vendors were setting up shop and where people were milling around waiting for them to open up.

“I think we can handle it, don’t you?” Waverly said with a grin. 

“With that smile? I think we’re gonna be the most popular people here.”

Thanks to the gorgeous weather, the market was in fact buzzing with people. Their newest product caused quite a commotion, and Waverly was out of soap to sell before anything else. Even though she had nothing to do with the process whatsoever, Nicole couldn’t help but feel a surge of pride as she watched Waverly work.

Waverly was _so_ popular that afternoon, in fact, that when Champ and Nicole started breaking down the stall around her, Waverly found she couldn’t get away to help. She was several minutes behind the others getting back home, and by the time Waverly pulled into the driveway, Nicole and Champ (but mostly Nicole) were nearly done unloading what little was left of the morning’s stock.

" _Sorry_ about that,” Waverly groaned as she climbed into the back of the truck and grabbed a crate of empty milk bottles. “I really didn’t mean to ditch you back there; I got cornered by one of my old high school teachers as we were getting ready to pack up and I just couldn’t get away!”

“Everybody loves you, Waves, so I’m not surprised,” Nicole said, eyes dancing with laughter as she grabbed the last couple crates and hopped out of the back herself.

“ _Everybody_ , hm?” Waverly said, her voice taking on an unmistakably flirtatious hint.

Nicole dropped the milk crates she was holding. Waverly smirked as the redhead, without a doubt, remained bent over for several moments longer than necessary before she turned around to meet Waverly’s eyes again.

“Everybody,” Nicole said quietly. They stood in loaded silence, Nicole hardly daring to breathe. 

Waverly made eye contact with Nicole, who had frozen in place with her mouth hanging open slightly, as though she were afraid of ruining the moment. She set down the crate of empties that she was still holding and took a couple steps closer to the redhead, her heart threatening to beat out of her chest entirely.

_It’s now or never, Earp._

Her touch was gentle as Waverly cradled Nicole’s face in her hands and kissed her softly. 

Nicole stood frozen, unable to believe it was really happening. Hands shaking, she rested them lightly on Waverly’s hips as she kissed her back tentatively, afraid that if she moved too fast she might accidentally break whatever spell had been cast over them that was making time stand still.

Waverly tasted so much sweeter than Nicole could have ever imagined, and she felt herself grow lightheaded as she sighed softly against the smaller woman’s mouth.

The sound of Champ’s truck engine startled them both, causing Waverly to pull away abruptly and look over her shoulder, a panicked expression crossing her face.

“Waverly—”

“I…I have to go,” Waverly said quickly, her eyes growing wide. Nicole reached for Waverly’s hand to try and stop her, but she was already walking away. As she watched the other woman take off towards the house, Nicole saw her roughly swipe at her face and her heart sank.

Waverly let the front door slam behind her and watched as a stunned Nicole stood in the same place she’d left her. Nicole ran a hand through her hair, and Waverly watched as the redhead’s posture deflated. She sighed, her shoulders sagged, and as she rubbed her eyes, her upper body appeared to fold in on itself. 

In two minutes, Nicole had gone from floating on cloud nine to standing, hurt and confused, beside a stack of empty milk crates. She drove home in silence, even going so far as to switch off the radio in her truck, and replayed the afternoon’s events over and over during the short drive home. She wondered if she had somehow misinterpreted the signals or—even worse—if Waverly had realized that actually, she wanted nothing to do with Nicole at all.

Once Nicole had pulled out of the driveway, Waverly let out a deep sigh. She didn’t understand where all this sudden panic had come from. After finally acting on weeks of confusion and curiosity, Waverly’s first instinct was to run away.

_What did that say about her?_

Suddenly, Waverly was exhausted. She kicked off her sandals by the door and headed straight for her bedroom, where she fell facefirst onto her bed with a groan of frustration.

***

The quiet of her empty house felt a little too loud as Nicole unlocked the front door. She bent over to untie her work boots and didn’t even bother to stop the melodramatic sigh that bubbled up from her chest.

Everything was upside down, and Nicole couldn’t figure out how it happened. She stared at the beer bottles lined up neatly in the fridge and wrinkled her nose, suddenly not interested. Instead, she grabbed her cigarettes from the kitchen counter and went out to the backyard.

As the flame from her lighter caught the tip of her cigarette, Nicole realized that she hadn’t had a single reason to light up since that first night at Shorty’s. She leaned against the porch railing and took a long drag, her nerves welcoming the wave of nicotine.

She stared into the woods behind her house and thought about the first time _she_ had kissed a girl.

Years of confusion had all built up to the first time that, tipsy at a party, she finally worked up the nerve to approach Shae as more than a friend. Beautiful, smart Shae, whose dad was a doctor and who was hell-bent on following in his footsteps.

That first kiss was sloppy and unpracticed, all fumbling hands and nervous giggles, behind a classmate’s barn. They knew what they were doing was risky, dangerous even, but they’d spent so much time tiptoeing around their feelings for one another that it was bound to happen, no matter how hard they tried to fight it.

They dated for nearly a year. 

Shae was Nicole’s first…everything. Her first girlfriend, first love…her first heartbreak.

And Nicole was terrified every day they were together. Hardly a week went by without someone in her house talking about how “the homosexuals” were ruining everything, from movies playing in the theater to national politics. It was exhausting to listen to even before Nicole realized she might be gay, and once she did…it was nearly unbearable.

Nicole’s instincts told her to go to Waverly. To hop in her truck and drive right back to the farm and make the younger girl tell her what was going on in her mind and in her heart. She sighed with her exhale, smoke blowing away in the slight afternoon breeze, knowing that no matter how badly she wanted to, she couldn’t do it.

If Waverly needed space, Nicole would give it to her. As much space as she needed.

***

“Waverly, sweetheart, what’s got you so bothered?”

Gus’s voice cut through Waverly’s racing thoughts at the dinner table later that night. Waverly jumped at the interruption and nearly dropped her fork.

“N-nothing,” She spluttered, shaking her head. “Probably just tired, I guess. We were slammed at the market this morning.”

“That’s what I heard,” Gus said. “Tell you what? I’ll take care of the dishes, you go take care of yourself. Go,” she added, waving her arms in Waverly’s direction, “Shoo!”

Waverly stood up from the table and wrapped her arms around her aunt in a hug.

“Be kind to yourself,” Gus said quietly. “You deserve a break, girl.”

As she left the dining room, Waverly thought about the words her aunt had chosen. 

_Has she noticed something?_ , Waverly wondered. She didn’t think she’d been obvious about her own internal conflicts, and she certainly hadn’t _discussed_ anything with Gus, but clearly Waverly wasn’t doing as good a job keeping things to herself as she thought.

Thinking about Nicole, Waverly felt her heart start to race once again. Why it was racing, she still couldn’t identify.

Was it Nicole? Or what Nicole _meant?_

Purgatory was a small town. Nearly everyone in town knew all about her. All about the Earp family’s skeletons. 

And even despite Waverly’s reputation as the “nicest person in Purgatory”—sash and all—many of them had historically been less than kind about it.

Being different in Purgatory was a huge risk. When her feelings for Nicole were just that, just _feelings_ swirling around in her head, they didn’t have consequences. But there was no going back now.

Thankfully, there were goats to milk and kids to chase, so avoiding the issue entirely surely wouldn’t prove to be difficult. She had soap to make and vegetables to tend to, and she hoped that it all would provide her enough distraction.

Right away on Monday morning, Waverly immediately noticed that Nicole wasn’t even trying to make contact. Without even acknowledging Waverly’s presence, Nicole headed off to the barn with Champ, the two of them already bickering. Waverly watched as she walked away, her fingers deftly weaving her hair into a braid as she argued with Champ about one thing or another.

A loud bleat quickly snapped Waverly back to reality as one of the goats reminded her that it was time for breakfast.

***

Nicole didn’t even try to make contact with Waverly at all that week, or at least not unless she absolutely had to. She didn’t want to risk overstepping and pushing the boundaries of their friendship—even if things didn’t work out between them…they still had to work together.

Thankfully, she had Champ Hardy working close by every day to irritate and distract her. She spent so much time chasing after him and fixing his mistakes that it was next to impossible for her to think about much else.

There was a moment, just one, around lunchtime one afternoon, where Nicole thought that something might happen. Thanks to an afternoon thunderstorm, she’d retreated to the farmhouse porch to ride it out and catch up on some reading. With half a sandwich in one hand, Nicole watched over the top of her book as Waverly sprinted for the front steps in an attempt to miss at least some of the rain. Briefly meeting Nicole’s eyes before disappearing into the house, she returned the small smile Nicole shot in her direction.

Maybe all hope wasn’t lost, after all. Nicole returned to her reading, unable to hide the stupid smile she knew was plastered on her face after just the smallest of interactions.

She just had to be patient. 

And Waverly…well, Nicole could tell she was worth the wait. There was no question.

Regardless of her personal life, time had a way of continuing to pass, and before Nicole knew it she was staring down the barrel of Friday night, anxious about the farmers’ market the next morning. Wanting to sleep an extra twenty minutes in the morning, Nicole laid the next day’s jeans and flannel shirt out on a chair in the corner of her bedroom, humming along to the tape she’d put on at near-full volume as she went:

_You're shining I can see you_

_You're smiling that's enough_

_I'm holding on to you_

_Like a diamond in the rough_

_Like a diamond in the rough_

The guitar chords filled the small space of the bedroom, and Nicole tried to breathe deeply and listen closely to ward off her impending anxiety about the next day. Waverly might not even _be_ there, given the week they’d had, and all of it was entirely too much uncertainty for Nicole’s liking.

Mercifully, Waverly was already out and starting to load the big truck when Nicole pulled up to the farmhouse the next morning. Nicole greeted her quietly, much like any other sleepy Saturday morning, and they made quick work loading the week’s goods into the back of the refrigerated truck. Before they headed out, Nicole helped Waverly with the baskets of neatly packaged soap she’d finished to bring and sell.

“These really do look adorable, Waves,” Nicole said softly as she set the basket in her arms down on the center console. “It’s come out really well.”

“Lots of trial and error, but I’m pretty happy with it.”

Waverly shrugged, clearly trying to appear nonchalant, but Nicole could see she was proud of herself. She’d perked up slightly at Nicole’s compliment, her cheeks colouring the lightest shade of pink. 

Nicole fiddled anxiously with one of her shirt cuffs, even as she smiled brightly at the other woman. She was desperate to somehow convey that she was open and willing to talk if Waverly was, but she also had no idea how to do that in a way that didn’t end with her losing her cool completely and kissing Waverly silly.

The Gibson Farm stall was busy as ever, keeping Nicole and Waverly busy enough that they were hardly able to talk to each other about anything. In fact, Nicole even found she had to step in and take care of customers rather than stay in the background like she was used to. She pushed through the anxiety she felt at the sight of so many people and helped out wherever she could, but once one o’clock rolled around and they could finally start breaking down for the day Nicole breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

“Thanks for that today,” Waverly said as she helped Nicole neatly refold their banner, “All the extra help. I know dealing with all those people probably stressed you out, but…I really appreciate it.”

Waverly’s face did that _thing_ again, her eyes crinkling slightly at the corners as she smiled, and Nicole momentarily forgot how to speak. She was sure she looked like a slackjawed idiot for a second before she cleared her throat awkwardly, heat rising to her cheeks.

“N-no problem,” Nicole stammered. “You know I would never leave you in the lurch like that.”

The short conversation was more interaction than they’d had all week, and Nicole was filled with a fleeting temptation to capitalize on the moment before it passed. She resisted the urge and went back to packing up.

Waverly watched as Nicole quickly busied herself and wondered if she hadn’t in fact imagined the moment that had passed between them. Nicole’s cheeks had looked a little pinker when she turned away quickly, neatly folded sign in hand, to finish loading the last of their supplies. She suddenly felt like an idiot for avoiding the redhead all week, because suddenly she couldn’t remember any of the reasons she’d given herself for doing so.

She sighed deeply as she watched Nicole close the back of the truck, her muscular shoulders straining slightly at her brightly coloured shirt—the same one she’d been wearing the day they met, in fact. Waverly wanted nothing more than to walk over, wrap her arms around the taller woman’s waist, and apologize a thousand times over for the way she’d behaved.

But she didn’t. Instead, like a coward, she stood by and watched silently.

With a small smile, Nicole quietly said goodbye before getting in her truck and driving away. As soon as she did, Waverly immediately took off for the pond. She needed to be alone with her thoughts, which kept going round and round in circles without ever coming to any conclusions.

The afternoon sun was warm on her skin as she spread a blanket out in the grassy clearing and sprawled out like a starfish in the middle. As Waverly closed her eyes, her mind began to quiet as she listened to the breeze rustle through the trees around her. She even began to let herself doze off a little, only to be abruptly startled back to the present by a familiar voice.

“Careful, Earp, or you’re gonna end up with a sunburn.”

Waverly sat up so fast that her head spun, and saw that Nicole was standing at the end of the path. Her voice was confident, but her arms were crossed tightly across her chest, hands gripping her biceps, and even as she stood still she rocked back and forth slightly on the balls of her feet. She was still dressed in the clothes she’d been wearing earlier in the day, and Waverly wondered, given the time, if Nicole had simply driven home and turned right around.

“Hey!” Waverly exclaimed, perhaps a little too enthusiastically. She scrambled to her feet, feeling her pulse start to pound loudly in her ears. “W-what’re you doing here? Not that I’m not happy to _see_ you, but—”

“ _Breathe_ , Waverly.”

The way Nicole said her name felt almost musical. Lyrical. It caused goosebumps to break out on Waverly’s arms, and caused her to forget how to breathe for a split second.

Nicole still looked anxious, even as she tried to give off her usual air of confidence. She worried her lower lip between her teeth, something clearly on the tip of her tongue. Waverly took a couple cautious steps toward the other woman, suddenly feeling abnormally shy and unsure of herself.

“Wave-”

“Nic-”

Both women tried to speak at the same time, drawing a laugh from Nicole and significantly easing some of the tension hanging between them.

“I just…about last weekend…” Waverly began, the words coming out more awkwardly than she intended as she stumbled over them. “Nicole, I—”

Waverly’s apology died in her throat as Nicole closed the space between them and her lips collided with hers. Strong arms wrapped around Waverly’s waist and pulled her close, and Waverly rose to her tiptoes so she could wrap her arms around Nicole’s neck and press her body flush to the redhead’s. She tasted sweet, almost impossibly so, with just a hint of…cigarette smoke?

Pulling back slightly, Waverly looked up at Nicole to meet her soft brown eyes.

“Were you smoking?” Waverly asked. She unwound one hand from the back of Nicole’s neck to gently stroke her cheek with her thumb. “You haven’t really been…doin’ that lately.”

Nicole’s cheek grew warm under Waverly’s thumb. “I hadn’t felt tempted to for a while…since our first night out at Shorty’s, actually.” Her voice was quiet, almost embarrassed, as she leaned in to Waverly’s touch, and it sent a pang of guilt through Waverly’s heart.

“Was it because of…me?” Waverly asked. “Because Nicole, I am _so_ sorry for the way I acted this week.” Her voice cracked slightly, and she _really_ hoped she wasn’t about to start crying. “This is all my fault. I’ve been such an asshole to you, and you didn’t deserve that.”

“It’s okay, Waves,” Nicole said quietly. She tightened her arms around Waverly’s waist and kissed the brunette’s forehead softly.

“I wouldn’t blame me if you were furious,” Waverly said. She looked up into Nicole’s warm eyes, searching for a hint that she might in fact be holding back anger or resentment.

“I actually _did_ come here to talk…but not because I’m mad.” Nicole repeated as she rested her forehead gently against Waverly’s. 

A gentle late afternoon breeze blew through the trees again, and Waverly found herself momentarily distracted by the way the wind blew Nicole’s firey hair into her face. She took advantage of the moment to tuck the escaped locks back behind Nicole’s ear, letting her fingers linger in the soft waves.

“I really am sorry,” Waverly said again, “Because I really like you.”

Nicole grinned, those dimples causing Waverly’s heart to skip a beat. “I really like you too. And I, uh…I want to take you on a date. That’s what I came here to say.”

Taking Nicole’s face in her hands, Waverly kissed her gently once again, slower this time. 

“Yes,” she breathed, “I’d love that.”

***

Nicole refused to tell Waverly what exactly it was she had planned for them, apart from telling her to keep the following Friday night open. 

All week, Waverly found herself extra distracted by everything the other woman did, and Nicole picked up on it almost immediately. She made sure to stop by the greenhouse or the goats’ barn a couple extra times a day, usually sweaty from working with cattle or making hay with Champ, to steal Waverly for a quick kiss or two and to simply smirk and shake her head when Waverly tried to draw answers out of her.

“Can you at least tell me what I should _wear_?” Waverly pouted as she leaned against the driver’s side door of Nicole’s truck, effectively blocking her access. Nicole smirked at the adorable expression on the shorter woman’s face before she leaned in to kiss it away.

“I’m not telling you what to wear,” Nicole said. Her smile was soft, but her tone was serious as she shook her head. “I don’t do that.”

The statement was so simple and so matter-of-fact that it actually took Waverly by surprise. 

While they’d never gone so far as to dictate _exactly_ what she should wear, Waverly’s past boyfriends had still made it no secret that they preferred for her to wear revealing clothes or act a particular way. Champ had been a particularly obnoxious offender, whining and pouting whenever Waverly put her foot down because she didn’t want to sit idly by watching him play video games or because she felt like covering up her abs every now and then.

“Wear whatever makes you comfortable,” Nicole said again, her voice dropping as she leaned in to kiss Waverly slowly, “and I’ll pick you up at 7:30.”

As she pulled away with a satisfied smirk on her face, Waverly thought she saw Nicole’s cheeks colour ever so slightly. She watched Nicole’s truck pull out of the driveway and double-checked the watch on her wrist to see how much time she had to get ready.

“Did that girl finally make her move or what?” Gus asked nonchalantly as Waverly breezed past her office on her way to hop in the shower.

Waverly froze in her tracks. She was positive she looked like a deer in the headlights as she backed up and gaped at her aunt. Gus turned around from her desk, took one look at Waverly’s face, and burst out laughing.

“I–wha–how–” Waverly stammered, her heart hammering in her chest so hard she was afraid she might pass out. 

She’d expected that she’d have this conversation with Gus eventually, but not _now_ . Hell, she hadn’t even had time to practice what she was going to _say_.

Gus stood up from her desk and enveloped her still-stunned niece in a warm hug.

“Waverly, _breathe…_ ”

The gentle reminder unfroze Waverly’s brain, and she cautiously embraced her aunt.

“How did you…know?”

“You realize you two haven’t been _nearly_ as sneaky as you think,” Gus said, which made Waverly groan in embarrassment. “Plus, that girl’s had it bad for you since the second you showed up here.” Gus winked at Waverly as she took a small step back and rested her hands on her shoulders. “I may be old, but I do have _eyes_ , y’know.”

Even in spite of her kind tone of voice, Waverly saw that her aunt was surveying her with worried eyes.

“What’s wrong?” she asked. She couldn’t quite read Gus’s expression, and it caused the knot of anxiety in her chest to tighten.

Gus sighed and paused, choosing her words carefully. “You’ve never really been one for convention, have ya?”

“I guess not,” Waverly said quietly. She shrugged under her aunt’s hands and gave her a halfhearted smile.

“You know I just want you to be happy, hon. That’s all. Doesn’t matter to me _who_ you end up with, just so long as they’re good to you. And out of everyone you could’ve chosen…”

“I really like her,” Waverly admitted quietly. Her face grew warm as she realized it was the first time she’d actually been able to express her feelings for Nicole out loud. “She’s…amazing,” she added honestly, not fighting the grin that spread across her face.

“As long as she makes you happy,” Gus said. “She’s a good kid. Now tell me, where is it you’re runnin’ off to?”

“Actually, I don’t know,” Waverly said with a frustrated exhale. “She’s picking me up in a little bit, but it’s all a big secret.

***

When Nicole pulled back into the driveway, she panicked briefly when she realized that she had no cover.

Luckily, before she could panic any further Waverly appeared on the front porch and Nicole got out of the truck to meet her.

Waverly’s toned abs were on full display in what appeared to be a sports bra underneath a loose-fitting white shirt knotted just above her navel. High-waisted shorts and white sneakers completed the outfit, and her hair was braided loosely, secured by a scrunchie.

“You look…fantastic,” Nicole said quietly. She leaned down and kissed Waverly’s cheek chastely, drawing a grin from the shorter woman.

“You don’t look so bad yourself,” Waverly said, toying with one of the buttons on Nicole’s brightly coloured button-down.

“You ready to go?”

Before Waverly could answer, the front door opened, startling them both.

“You be good to my niece, okay?” Gus called from the porch.

Nicole froze, her face turning a shade of red to rival her hair. Her eyes went wide as she looked from Waverly to Gus and back again.

“Uh, Waverly, wha—”

“Gus figured it out,” Waverly said quickly. “I’ll explain in the car.”

Even mildly stunned, Nicole opened the passenger door for Waverly before hopping in the truck herself.

“What…was _that?_ ” She asked slowly.

“I mean…she did, she figured it out,” Waverly said quietly. “I believe her exact words were ‘I may be old, but I’ve got eyes.’”

Nicole sighed deeply, slightly embarrassed that she’d been so obvious. “She’s not…upset, is she?”

“No, not at all,” Waverly said. “Actually, she may have said that of all the limited dating options around here…she’s glad it’s you. Don’t look so surprised!” She added with a laugh. “Gus really likes you.”

Nicole couldn’t help the relieved grin that spread across her face as she put the truck in gear and pulled out of the driveway.

***

They pulled into Nicole’s driveway, and Nicole killed the engine of her truck, but didn’t make any move to get out. Instead, she unfastened her seat belt and turned in the driver’s seat to face Waverly. Her brown eyes were wide as she searched for the words to explain her thought process.

“So, I know it’s not exactly ’out,’” Nicole said, nerves creeping in around the edges of her voice, “but I checked the menus of every decent place in Purgatory, and their vegetarian options were…lackluster at best. So I thought it might be nice if we…if I—”

“You remembered?” Waverly blurted out.

“Of course I did,” Nicole said. She smiled softly, dimples on full display as she relaxed ever so slightly, and ghosted her fingertips over the back of Waverly’s hand. “Why wouldn’t I remember?”

Waverly’s cheeks flushed pink. “I guess I’m not used to people…remembering that kind of stuff right away. I mean, I only mentioned it once…”

“But it’s an important thing to remember,” Nicole said. “So I’ve got a whole vegetarian feast planned, if that’s okay?”

“It’s perfect.” Waverly grinned.

“Good, because I’ve got a ton of food.”

Nicole smiled again, her eyes a little brighter this time, and slid out of the truck to open Waverly’s door for her. Waverly threaded her fingers through Nicole’s as they went inside, and she found she couldn’t keep her eyes from flickering down every few seconds to stare at their intertwined hands.

Nicole didn’t let Waverly lift a finger once they got inside. Instead, she poured them each a glass of wine and insisted Waverly make herself comfortable while she put dinner together. Waverly settled herself at Nicole’s small kitchen table and watched as the redhead got to work, taking a large swig from her own glass before tying her hair back out of her face.

“I already prepped a bunch of stuff, so you wouldn’t have to watch me chop up vegetables all night,” Nicole said as she pulled a series of glass bowls from the fridge, each containing a different ingredient.

“I’m sure I wouldn’t have minded,” Waverly said, grinning.

At Waverly’s request, Nicole kept up a running narration as she assembled the night’s centerpiece, a vegetable tart.

“You _made_ that?” Waverly asked, slightly awed, as Nicole pulled out the plastic-wrapped pastry she’d left in the fridge to chill overnight.

“It was nothing,” Nicole said, blushing furiously. “Really.”

“Well, _I’m_ impressed,” Waverly declared. She smirked over the edge of her wine glass, thoroughly enjoying the way she seemed to be flustering the redhead. “I’m _sure_ it’ll be delicious.”

Unsurprisingly, Nicole was an excellent cook, but more than anything Waverly found she couldn’t stop thinking about the care she’d taken in planning the night.

She had listened so carefully. Waverly wasn’t sure she had ever met anyone like her, but she _was_ certain she didn’t want the night to end.

As they had on so many nights before, the two of them eventually found their way out to Nicole’s backyard, except this time Waverly found herself wrapped in Nicole’s embrace as they talked. Nicole was warm and strong around her, and an overwhelming feeling of calm kept washing over Waverly from head to toe.

“You okay?” Nicole asked quietly, placing a gentle kiss on the sensitive spot just behind Waverly’s ear.

“Yeah.” A shiver ran through Waverly’s body at the intimate gesture. “Just…really happy.”

Even with her back to her, Waverly could practically feel Nicole’s grin.

“Nicole, I’m…really sorry about the way I acted last week,” Waverly said softly.

“Waves, it’s okay,” Nicole interjected. “Really—”

“No, it’s not,” Waverly said firmly, turning around so she was face-to-face with Nicole in the dim light. “I was scared of what I was feeling, but that’s no excuse for shutting you out—I was an asshole, plain and simple. And I’m sorry. You didn’t deserve that, not when you’ve been nothing but…so kind.”

Waverly’s voice trailed off as she scanned Nicole’s face, her gaze eventually landing square on Nicole’s lips.

Like she was reading her mind, Nicole leaned forward to capture Waverly’s lips slowly. Waverly immediately found her hands going to Nicole’s hair, not able to get enough of the feeling of the silky, vibrant locks between her fingers.

“I don’t think you’re an asshole,” Nicole murmured, her voice low and husky against Waverly’s mouth. “I promise. Though, I _am_ glad you finally came to your senses…”

Waverly laughed. “How could I not?”

“I’m glad you had a nice time,” Nicole said, tightening her arms slightly around Waverly’s waist. “Next time, we can—”

“Next time?”

“Only if you want to, I mean,” Nicole added quickly.

“ _Nicole_ …” Waverly sighed. “Of _course_ I do.”

“Okay,” Nicole said with a grin. “Just checking. Hey,” she added, “it’s getting kind of…late. I don’t want to, but…”

“But we should probably call it a night?” Waverly said quietly. “We _do_ have to be at work early tomorrow…” She sighed. “This was so wonderful though.”

***

Long after Nicole had dropped her off at home, Waverly lay wide awake in bed. She kept thinking about the feeling of Nicole’s lips on hers…her strong arms wrapped around her…the way Nicole had gone out of her way to make her feel comfortable.

What she had no way of knowing, however, was that just up the road…Nicole was riding a similar train of thought. 

Nicole busied herself laying out her clothes for the next day, thinking. What struck her over and over throughout the night was the fact that it was so _easy_ to relax and be herself with Waverly, and that wasn’t something Nicole ever took for granted.

For once, she was anxious to be up early the next day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Come yell at me on Twitter!](https://twitter.com/unsaltysaltines)
> 
> [This fic has a playlist](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1XN4lEtTXMKw9vY9y9Mfb5?si=OYjz5qsZQAee2AlUapuNBA), and in case you were curious, [Nicole was jamming to Shawn Colvin](https://open.spotify.com/track/0vO4Q3jR9tExcUvA4r82lV?si=SBy4A9RATEqQ3BWLluorYw).
> 
> Thanks to [Blankagenda](https://twitter.com/Blankagenda) for always making sure my words are coherent before I fling them out into the void!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wayhaught talk about sex and expectations.
> 
> Waverly wears safety goggles.
> 
> Someone crashes date night.
> 
> A good time is generally had by all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back! 
> 
> Hopefully y'all are ready for some feelings and general sweetness with a sprinkling of Oblivious Wynonna.
> 
> [This fic has a playlist!](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1XN4lEtTXMKw9vY9y9Mfb5?si=10Fw9oGQTeKntedKTUXljw)

Despite the fact that her aunt had known about them from the very beginning, Waverly wasn’t quite ready to put her relationship with Nicole on full display just yet. She barely understood her own feelings, but Nicole was so patient with her, almost impossibly so.

Waverly had so many questions that Nicole was more than willing to answer. She borrowed book after book from Nicole’s shelves, and Nicole was happy to talk about them endlessly. It had been a long time since someone had been interested in her collection of lesbian literature, and just spending time talking about books with Waverly was enough to remind her that she could in fact still use her brain.

Nicole prided herself on being a professional at work, which Waverly simultaneously appreciated and resented immensely. It wasn’t _Waverly’s_ fault that Nicole looked so at home on the back of a horse…or yelling at Champ…or helping Waverly harvest vegetables. It took all of Waverly’s self control _not_ to steal her girlfriend away whenever she wanted (which was all the time, if she was being honest), and she was glad that Nicole appeared to have at least a modicum more of professionalism.

That professionalism, however, didn’t mean Nicole was necessarily above steaking the occasional kiss while _Waverly_ was working. Nor did it mean she was opposed to the occasional long lunch when the weather was cooperative, so they could be alone and enjoy the sunshine.

It was during one of those long lunches that Waverly decided to bring up something that had been on her mind for nearly all of the time they’d been together. The new relationship was infinitely exciting to Waverly, but there was something that just wouldn’t stop nagging at her.

They had slipped off to the pond for lunch, and Waverly was basking in the sun while Nicole dozed lightly beside her.

“Hey, babe?”

Nicole perked up slightly at the pet name.

“Hm…yeah?”

She sat up and leaned in a little closer so she could kiss Waverly lazily. A slow grin spread across Waverly’s face at the soft contact, and she cradled Nicole’s face in her hands gently before asking the question on her mind.

“Are you upset that we haven’t…done anything? Beyond this, I mean,” she added quickly. “And I _know_ I sound so juvenile, but…”

Nicole laughed as Waverly groaned and buried her face in her hands, her cheeks flushing a bright red.

“Waverly, are you asking if I’m _mad_ that we haven’t had sex yet?” Nicole asked with a grin. She gently pried Waverly’s hands away from her face to look her in the eyes. “Baby, what makes you think I’d be mad?”

“I don’t know,” Waverly groaned. “It’s just been long enough now that, I don’t know…maybe you’d be expecting it? And I know I shouldn’t be comparing you to Champ, but—”

“Did he pressure you?” Nicole interjected. “Because I swear to _god_ —”

“Not _really_ ,” Waverly said, “Though you really look ready to kick someone’s ass and it’s adorable.”

“Well, I _will_ kick that rodeo clown’s ass if I have to!” Nicole exclaimed. “You’re in the driver’s seat here, Waves. I know this is new to you,” the redhead added quietly, “so I would never want to pressure you into anything you’re not comfortable doing. Because believe it or not, I’m not _just_ in this for your body.”

Waverly laughed as Nicole smirked and wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. She sighed and leaned back into Nicole’s arms, and Nicole took the opportunity to drop a quick kiss on her temple.

“Have I made you feel pressured at all?” Nicole asked quietly, her tone serious. “Like I was expecting too much?”

“ _No!_ ” Waverly yelped. “Never! I’m sorry; I don’t know why I’m so stressed all of a sudden. I guess I’m just being ridiculous.”

“You’re not ridiculous!” Nicole said. “I swear on my childhood hamster’s grave, Waverly Earp, I will _never_ find you ridiculous, _especially_ when it comes to sex.”

Waverly narrowed her eyes. “You’ve never mentioned a childhood hamster.”

“You caught me; I didn’t _have_ a hamster whose grave I can swear on,” Nicole said with an exaggerated huff. “But…” She sighed and paused. “I don’t want you to think that I have some kind of…upper hand here, or something. I like you a _lot,_ Waverly, and that means _all_ of you.”

“What did I do to deserve you, hm?” Waverly asked with a satisfied smile.

Nicole grinned and kissed Waverly’s temple gently. “It’s just…how you deserve to be treated. Simple as that.”

***

Later that afternoon, before she left for the day, Nicole stopped by the house, where Waverly had set up her soap production and was in the middle of mixing up a new batch. She knocked gently on the kitchen table to announce her presence, not wanting to startle the other woman, who was decked out in safety goggles and thick rubber gloves like she was working in a chemistry lab.

Waverly looked over her shoulder and smiled when she saw who was interrupting her.

“What’s up?”

“Since your birthday’s this weekend…” Nicole said, “I think it might be fun to go out dancing…properly. Tonight, maybe?”

Waverly’s heart soared. September 8th had been staring at her from the calendar on her bedroom wall, almost like it was mocking her. Nicole had asked her early on—even before they’d started dating—when her birthday was. Even so, Waverly tried not to get her hopes up too high that the redhead would actually remember, that she actually _cared_ enough to remember.

No matter how hard they tried, even the people Waverly loved the most always forgot her birthday. She had never been able to understand how everyone managed to forget about her _every year_ , when Waverly was never anything but meticulous in remembering special dates for everyone else. All Waverly wanted was for someone to remember... _without_ having to drop hints left and right in the weeks leading up to it.

She didn’t think it was _that_ much to ask.

“Like…out to Shorty’s?” Waverly asked, slightly confused.

“No, _definitely_ not Shorty’s,” Nicole said with a sly smirk. “I’ve got…another idea.”

“Oh really?” Waverly said. “I’m listening.”

“That’s all the information I’m giving you, Earp,” Nicole said, holding her hands out innocently. “I don’t care how cute you look at me! _Or_ how cute you look in those goggles!”

“You _sure_ about that?”

Waverly paused in her mixing to flash Nicole the biggest puppy dog eyes she could muster, since her hands were little busy handling dangerous chemicals.

“I want it to be a _surprise…_ ” Nicole whined, an adorable pout crossing her face. “It’s not _fair_ to weaponize this…sexy scientist look!”

“ _Fine,_ ” Waverly admitted. “But I do want to _dance_ with you, miss ‘I don’t dance,’ so as long as we get to do that, I’ll be happy. Call it my birthday present.”

“Well, I’ll pick you up at eight and we’ll remedy that, okay? If that works for your…process?”

“That sounds great,” Waverly said with a smile. “I should be done in here by then.”

“It’s settled, then. I’ll see you tonight.”

Nicole leaned in and kissed Waverly quickly before turning to leave. 

Almost as soon as Nicole closed the front door behind her, Waverly heard the crunch of truck tires outside that couldn’t possibly be Nicole’s. In the distance, her sister’s familiar voice greeted Nicole with a loud “What up, Ginger Spice?” before she came barging through the front door herself.

“What’re we up to tonight, baby girl?!”

Even though she was expecting the interruption, Wynonna’s sudden appearance still made Waverly jump.

“Wynonna, I’m in the middle of mixing lye!” She exclaimed.

“My baby sister, the chemist,” Wynonna said fondly as she sat down at the table. “ _So…_ what are we doing tonight? Or did you forget I’d gotten the night off work?”

“ _Shit!_ ” Waverly hissed. Yes, yes she _had_ forgotten that she’d promised her sister they could go out drinking together that night.

“What was _that_ for?” Wynonna asked in mock offense. “Trying to blow off your big sister for bigger and better things?”

“I mean…” Waverly rolled her eyes. “I might have just made plans to go out with Nicole…”

“ _Out?!_ Like on a _date?!_ ” 

“I…yeah,” Waverly sighed. Once again, not exactly how she wanted to tell Wynonna, but there was going to be no stopping her.

Her sister let out a whoop of excitement that only prompted Waverly to roll her eyes again.

“Well what am I supposed to do with myself tonight then?” Wynonna asked.

“I mean, I think we’re just going to a bar…” Waverly sighed. “If you want to come with us. But you have to be cool about it!”

“For my dear, beloved baby sister? _Always,_ ” Wynonna said with a smirk.

“Maybe it’s a good thing you’re here,” Waverly said. “You can help me decide what the hell I should _wear._ ”

***

Waverly met Nicole outside when she pulled into the yard, greeting her with a kiss as soon as she stepped out of her truck.

“Well hello to you too,” Nicole said with a grin.

“We’ve got a tagalong,” Waverly said quickly in response. “I’m _sorry_ ; I forgot that I kind of…promised Wynonna we would do something, since she’s got the night off.”

Nicole raised her eyebrows in surprise. “Okay, that’s not _exactly_ what I had in mind for tonight…I wanted it to be a surprise, but now I feel like I should _probably_ let you know that I was planning on taking you to a lesbian bar tonight? Unless you want to reschedule…”

“Why should we let her ruin our fun?” Waverly said with a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “She’s the one who invited herself, so she can deal with it. I just _really_ don’t want to go to Shorty’s again.”

“Waves, you look…unsettled,” Nicole said quietly, leaning in to drop the lightest of kisses on the tip of Waverly’s nose. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Waverly said quickly. “Wynonna just…guessed that we were dating, and I think it took me by surprise?”

“You’re sure you still want to go out tonight?”

Waverly’s eyes widened. 

“Oh no.” She said seriously. “I’m getting you out on a dance floor tonight, Wynonna be damned.”

Nicole laughed at the other woman’s dedication. “Okay, okay, fine. I just wanted to check!”

Wynonna chose that moment to make her entrance, letting the front door slam shut behind her. Waverly jumped and turned to watch her sister march down the front steps, clad in leather pants and a deep burgundy tank she’d stolen from Waverly’s closet, her ever-present fringed leather jacket slung over one arm.

“ _Leave room for Wynonna!_ ” The older Earp cried with a smug grin as she approached. Waverly rolled her eyes at her sister and gave Nicole’s arm a squeeze before they all piled into Nicole’s truck.

***

“ _Pussy Willows_ ?!” Wynonna exclaimed as Nicole pulled into the parking lot of the bar and killed the engine. “Never been _here_ before.”

“You’re the one who invited yourself, Earp,” Nicole said with a laugh.

Waverly grabbed Nicole’s hand as they entered the crowded, dimly lit bar and looked around with wide eyes, taking everything in around her.

She wasn’t sure she’d ever seen so many women in one place. Some were dressed in skirts or dresses, while others wore sharp button-downs tucked into jeans, their hair cut short. There were couples everywhere, and Waverly found that she was anxious to get out onto the packed dance floor.

“Want a drink?” Nicole asked, leaning close so she could talk into Waverly’s ear. Waverly nodded, and Nicole tugged her through the crowd toward the bar. Once they had drinks in hand, they found the one empty high top in the bar and claimed it for themselves.

“Do you think Wynonna has figured it out yet?” Nicole asked, watching as Wynonna ordered her own drink and scanned the room for them. She looked across the table at Waverly, who was sipping her own drink while watching her sister, a smirk on her face.

“She _must_ have,” Waverly said as she looked over again to the bar, where Wynonna had turned back to the bartender and appeared to now be deep in conversation. She reached across the table for Nicole’s hand and threaded her fingers through the other woman’s. Nicole carried herself with a different sort of confidence in this space, and Waverly loved seeing her so relaxed.

“Let’s dance!” Waverly exclaimed, tugging on Nicole’s hand and leading her out to the dance floor.

Nicole didn’t fancy herself the worst dancer in the world, but it was quickly made clear that she had nothing on Waverly Earp. The loud, pulsing music seemed to infuse itself into Waverly’s every move, and Nicole was nothing but happy to let her take the lead as she wrapped her arms around Nicole’s neck and pulled her close.

She hadn’t been to Pussy Willows since before she met Waverly, and Nicole had almost forgotten how liberating it felt to be in a room full of women like her. She didn’t have to worry about disapproving looks from strangers as Waverly moved her hips against hers and as she allowed her hands to roam.

Waverly’s hazel eyes met Nicole’s as they danced, and Nicole leaned forward to kiss her deeply, free from the risks they had to deal with on a daily basis.

“This is a _lesbian_ bar!” Wynonna exclaimed loudly once she finally made her way back to their table and slammed her mostly-empty glass down.

“You finally figured it out!” Nicole exclaimed. She and Waverly were midway through another round of drinks, and Waverly was leaning on Nicole with one arm wrapped around her waist and her head resting on Nicole’s shoulder. Waverly grinned at her sister’s shocked expression. “I was starting to wonder if you ever would!”

“No _wonder_ that bartender kept asking me questions,” Wynonna groaned. “I really thought she was just being _nice…_ ”

Nicole laughed. “I mean, I don’t know if it’s your thing, but…that cute redhead over by the bar keeps checking you out,” she said, trying her best to point discreetly over Wynonna’s shoulder back in the direction of the bar.

“Oh my gosh, that’s Mercedes Gardner!” Waverly exclaimed, a little more intensely than the situation _really_ called for. “Wynonna, you’ve _got_ to go over and say hi!” She shoved her sister forcefully in the direction of the other woman before turning back to Nicole. 

“Now I get you all to myself again,” she said, her voice dropping low as she met Nicole’s warm brown eyes. Tugging gently on Nicole’s hand, Waverly drew the redhead away from their table again and toward a dimly lit, unoccupied corner not too far away. 

Emboldened by the slight buzz from the alcohol, as well as the cover of darkness the club provided, Waverly pushed the redhead up against the wall of the bar as she captured her lips in a searing kiss. Her tongue gently flicked across Nicole’s lips, which drew a squeak of surprise from the taller woman. while Waverly ran her hands over every curve of Nicole’s body she could reach.

Nicole gasped against Waverly’s mouth as the brunette’s hands gave her ass a surprisingly hard squeeze, and she wrapped her arms around Waverly’s waist so she could pull their bodies flush.

“ _Jesus_ ,” Waverly growled as her body collided roughly with Nicole’s.

“Waverly Earp, you’re _quite_ the exhibitionist,” Nicole murmured, her voice thick with desire. In one swift, graceful movement, she quickly took control and flipped them so she could pin Waverly up against the wall, blazing a trail of kisses down Waverly’s jaw and neck. 

“Doesn’t seem to be bothering you too much,” Waverly breathed, voice hitching as Nicole gently raked her teeth over a particularly sensitive spot.

Nicole smirked and laughed before burying her face in Waverly’s neck once again, lingering just above her collarbone until she was sure she’d left a mark.

“Oh, I don’t mind one bit,” Nicole said.

The vibrations of Nicole’s voice rippled through Waverly’s chest and only continued to reverberate right down through her core. Waverly could only groan in response, and Nicole chuckled, sending another wave of vibrations through Waverly’s body.

Waverly couldn’t help herself; the music was so loud around them that it felt like it was pulsating through her bones, and she began to move her hips to the beat, taking Nicole with her as she kept her hands firmly planted on Nicole’s hips.

There was nothing Nicole wanted more than to have the brunette right there, against the wall of a seedy lesbian bar, music pumping loud around them. She could feel the pressure building in her core as Waverly responded so readily to every touch and kiss, but the final straw came when Waverly started grinding her hips deliciously to the beat beneath her.

“ _Jesus…_ ” Nicole sighed, her knees nearly giving out underneath her.

“I want you to take me home,” Waverly mumbled into Nicole’s ear. “And I want you to make me _scream._ ”

She nipped gently at Nicole’s ear, drawing a low whine from the taller woman.

“ _God,_ Waverly…” Nicole groaned. “We have to find Wynonna first…”

Waverly abruptly pushed Nicole back a couple inches before taking her face in her hands, her expression very serious.

“ _I_ am going to go find—and ditch—my sister. _You_ are going to go start the truck.” 

With one more kiss, Waverly slipped out of Nicole’s embrace and disappeared into the crowd, leaving a stunned Nicole in her wake. Nicole very quickly gathered her things and all but ran back out to the parking lot and her truck, where she didn’t have to wait long before Waverly was closing the passenger side door behind her.

“Where’s—”

“Wynonna?” Waverly cut Nicole off. “She and Mercedes were ‘reconnecting’ pretty hard back there,” she said with a grin, “she shooed me away and told me to leave without her, so…we’re good.”

Waverly’s hand immediately went to the loose strands of Nicole’s hair at the base of her neck as the redhead buckled her seatbelt and started the truck. She threaded her fingers through the fine hair over and over as Nicole drove, her eyes laser-focused on the road ahead of them.

The small, repetitive motions were somehow even more distracting to Nicole than if Waverly’s hand were exploring between her legs. Her gentle fingers sent shiver after shiver down Nicole’s spine, and it was difficult to keep her attention on the road. 

Waverly’s lips were back on Nicole’s the second she closed her front door behind them. She slipped off the elastic holding Nicole’s loose braid in place, anxious to tangle her fingers in the bright red waves. Nicole gasped against her mouth as Waverly gripped her hair, hands groping for any item of clothing she could find.

Nicole wrapped her arms around Waverly’s waist and tugged gently at where Waverly’s top was tucked into her shorts. As she moved Waverly backwards towards the stairs, Nicole simultaneously pulled her top free of her waistband, dragging her fingertips across the smooth expanse of skin beneath.

Waverly groaned as she felt Nicole’s cool, gentle hands settle on her back. “ _Baby…_ ”

As much as it pained her to, Nicole pulled away momentarily, lips swollen and hair messy.

“Waverly…” she breathed, “Hang on.”

“Is something wrong?” Waverly asked, searching Nicole’s face for any indication that something was bothering her.

“No, nothing’s wrong! I just want to make sure this is what you want,” Nicole said, her pulse suddenly racing with nerves rather than arousal. “Because _believe_ me, it’s what I want, but not if you’re not comfortable with it. I mean, just this afternoon you were saying that—”

Waverly shushed Nicole into silence, and a huge smile spread across her face as she ran her thumbs over the apples of Nicole’s cheeks. “This is absolutely what I want.”

In response, Nicole just kissed her again, keeping a supportive hand on Waverly’s back as she dipped her back just slightly. In one effortless movement, Nicole scooped the smaller woman up off the ground, and Waverly hooked her legs securely around Nicole’s waist. As Nicole ascended the stairs carefully, Waverly cradled her face in her hands and dropped gentle kisses along her jawline with the explicit intention of seeing just how far she could push the redhead.

Nicole set Waverly down gently on her bed with a long, lingering kiss, grasping the hem of Waverly’s shirt and pulling it up and over her head. Waverly shivered as the cool air hit her skin 

“C’mere,” Waverly mumbled, standing up from the bed as she began tugging at Nicole’s shirt. She pulled the navy button-down free from where it was tucked into her jeans, and it was all she could do not to simply rip it open. Nicole laughed when she noticed Waverly’s look of frustration and began unbuttoning her shirt from the top down.

Waverly pushed the offending button-down off Nicole’s shoulders and felt her heart stop momentarily as she took in the redhead’s body. Her muscles were clearly defined from years of farm work, but Waverly found herself intoxicated by the decidedly feminine curve of Nicole’s hips. She followed Nicole’s lead in shedding her shorts and allowing the taller woman to gently push her back on the bed.

“You good?” Nicole asked with one more kiss, hovering over the smaller woman and scanning her face for any sign of doubt. 

Waverly hummed contentedly, even as she felt her body began to quake with nerves, an anxious vibration that rippled out from her chest like a particularly strong shiver.

“Hey,” Nicole said quietly, raising her eyebrows in concern. “What’s wrong? Did I do something?”

“You didn’t do anything wrong, I promise,” Waverly said. She rolled onto her side so she could face Nicole, and she could practically see her hand shaking as she gently ran her thumb over Nicole’s cheek.

“Waves, you’re shaking awful hard. Are you cold?” Her mood immediately shifting, Nicole reached for a blanket to pull over both of them.

“I’m just…suddenly really nervous,” Waverly admitted. “Because you’re obviously amazing and I want to do…this with you. But,” she added with a sigh, “I’m worried that I won’t be able to—”

Nicole cut her off by pressing one gentle finger to her lips.

“You’re in charge here, Waves,” Nicole said quietly as she straddled Waverly’s hips. “And I’m not going to make you do _anything_ you’re not comfortable with. So don’t worry about me…” She kissed the brunette gently and smirked as Waverly’s hips bucked slightly beneath her. “I just want to make _you_ feel good. Got it?”

Waverly only nodded as she tangled her fingers in Nicole’s hair and willed her body to relax and surrender to the redhead’s experienced touch.

“Please…” Waverly breathed against Nicole’s mouth, gripping the hair at the back of Nicole’s neck. She closed her eyes as Nicole’s lips blazed a trail down her neck and slipped one hand between her thighs, dragging her fingers slowly, almost agonizingly slow, towards the wetness pooling between her legs.

“Oh, _baby_ …” Nicole said as she slid one finger beneath the waistband of Waverly’s panties and through her now-throbbing center. “Is that for me?”

Nicole smirked when all Waverly could manage was a string of incoherent syllables, her hips rolling up to meet Nicole’s hand in an attempt to seek some relief. Her thumb circled Waverly’s clit as she slipped one finger into the brunette, drawing a gasp from the other woman.

“ _Nicole!_ ”

“If you need me to stop…”

“ _No!_ ” Waverly exclaimed. “Keep going. _Please_.”

Nicole began moving rhythmically inside her, capturing her mouth again in a series of increasingly sloppy kisses. Waverly clung tight to the redhead as she felt a second finger dip into her wetness, bringing her closer to the edge.

“Baby…” Nicole sighed, feeling the pulse of her own arousal grow stronger as Waverly’s walls begin to clench around her, “you feel incredible…”

Nicole curled her fingers just slightly, and Waverly felt herself fly over the edge. The redhead held her tightly as her orgasm rippled through her body, causing her whole body to tremble in the other woman’s arms. Just as she thought she was about to come down, Nicole slightly moved her fingers as though to pull out and Waverly was hit with a second wave.

“I’ve got you, Waves,” Nicole murmured, kissing the brunette gently as she came down and her body stopped shaking. She gently withdrew her fingers, and Waverly felt herself turn to jelly beneath the more experienced woman’s touch.

“You’re amazing.”

Nicole propped herself up a little more so she could admire how Waverly appeared to glow in the aftermath. She dropped a series of gentle, lazy kisses along the sharp line of Waverly’s jaw and down her neck as the brunette gradually relaxed beneath her, and grinned when she heard Waverly sigh quietly at the soft contact.

_I love you._

The words came so quickly to the front of Nicole’s mind that she had to bite her tongue to keep herself from saying them out loud. She’d never felt such a strong surge of emotion so quickly, but at the same time she knew in her heart that what she felt was real.

Curling herself around the other woman, Nicole stayed awake until long after Waverly’s breathing evened out and she fell fast asleep.

***

Waverly slipped out of bed early the next morning, grinning as she watched a sleeping Nicole’s brow furrow in displeasure. She reached out for Waverly, the early morning sun falling across the exposed expanse of Nicole’s bare back, and Waverly found herself distracted by just how beautiful she was in the aftermath of their activities the night before.

She dressed quietly and slipped out of the bedroom and down to the kitchen to make coffee. Humming quietly to herself, Waverly made herself busy in the kitchen, thoroughly basking in the sense of calm that was washing over her in wave after wave.

“That shirt looks familiar.”

Nicole’s voice, still husky with sleep, startled Waverly, and she turned around to see Nicole standing with her arms crossed over her chest and a huge grin on her face. She’d gotten dressed…but barely; all she’d done was throw on a sports bra and sweatpants, and Waverly felt her face flush as her eyes roamed over Nicole’s impressively toned figure.

“I couldn’t help myself; it was just…sitting there,” Waverly said, feigning innocence.

“Honestly, it’s not fair that my clothes look so much better on you,” Nicole said as she crossed the kitchen and wrapped her arms around Waverly’s waist. She slipped her hands under the hem of the bright blue, striped button-down that Waverly had swiped from her bedroom, smirking as she felt Waverly’s skin erupt in goosebumps beneath her touch.

Beneath the button-down, which she’d left wide open, Waverly wasn’t wearing…anything, save for a pair of _very_ revealing black panties. Nicole slowly dragged her fingertips up along Waverly’s spine, causing Waverly’s breath to hitch deliciously, and she could feel that same flame from the night before begin to smoulder once again, deep in her belly.

“I had a…really good time last night,” Waverly murmured as Nicole continued her ministrations, kissing the gentlest of trails up Waverly’s neck and along her jaw.

“Glad to hear it,” Nicole said before _finally_ capturing Waverly’s lips in a long, lazy kiss. “Because I’d like _very_ much to do it again.”

“Oh, really?” Waverly asked, voice low. She tangled her fingers in Nicole’s hair to keep her right where she wanted her.

“Mmm-hmm.” Nicole hummed as she leaned in to kiss Waverly again, tongue gently teasing her lips. In one swift, smooth motion, Nicole pulled Waverly in tightly and scooped her up off the floor entirely, her strong arms tight around Waverly’s middle. 

Nicole carefully walked the few steps to the living room and set Waverly down on the couch with a gentle kiss. She pushed Waverly’s shirt off her shoulders and raked her gaze over the brunette’s body hungrily.

“See something you like, cutie?” Waverly asked with a smirk.

Nicole swallowed hard, her pupils blown wide with her own arousal, and Waverly quickly seized on the opportunity to sit up and flip their positions, pushing the redhead back against the pillows at the other end of the couch.

“ _Fuck,_ Waves…” Nicole gasped.

“I want to know what _you_ like,” Waverly breathed. She ran her hands up Nicole’s sides and under her sports bra, and Nicole propped herself up slightly so she could assist in pulling the tight garment over her head and discarding it off to the side.

Waverly wanted to taste every inch of Nicole’s perfect skin. She ducked her head and kissed a blazing trail up between Nicole’s perfect breasts, drawing a shaky gasp from the redhead as she grazed her teeth gently over sensitive skin.

“Baby, I… _need_ you…” Nicole groaned, her voice bordering on a whine. There was a knot of delicious tension building deep in her belly just begging for release at Waverly’s hand. A flicker of nerves flashed across Waverly’s face, and Nicole pulled her close for a gentle kiss.

“Trust your instincts, Waves,” Nicole breathed, providing Waverly with the reassurance she needed to take charge once again. She dragged her fingertips down the length of Nicole’s long torso and slipped her hand beneath the soft waistband of Nicole’s sweatpants.

***

On Sunday, Waverly met her sister for breakfast at the only diner in town. 

Wynonna _had_ originally wanted to meet up the day before, but Waverly still had a few more weeks of working the market before it closed for the season. Though, she couldn’t exactly say she’d been “working” as much as she’d found herself distractedly following Nicole’s every move while she was _supposed_ to be working.

Wynonna slid into the booth across from her sister, looking significantly worse for wear.

“How much whiskey did you drink last night?” Waverly asked with a smirk.

“ _None_ , actually,” Wynonna grumbled. “I closed down the bar last night and then…maybe haven’t gone to sleep yet.”

“ _Wynonna!_ ”

“ _What?!_ ” The older Earp exclaimed. “I had…things to do.”

“Oh really?” Waverly asked. “Like _who?_ ”

“Mercedes,” Wynonna mumbled before taking a huge sip of the water in front of her.

“ _I knew it!_ ” Waverly yelped. “Crashing date night sure seems to have worked out for you, eh?”

“Yeah, about that…” Wynonna said, her tone more serious. “I’m sorry for inviting myself like an asshole.”

“Wynonna, it’s _fine_ ,” Waverly said. “I’m not _actually_ that upset about it. It was actually one of the best birthdays I’ve had in a long time.”

Waverly felt her face flush as Wynonna surveyed her with piercing blue eyes. 

“You finally made your move, baby girl,” Wynonna sighed smugly. “I’m impressed.”

“I really like her, Wynonna,” Waverly said softly. “But this is all so _new_.”

“I mean, I can’t claim to know too much about women, but Haught seems like a good person. Better than that last fucking _clown_ you dated—who, by the way, seems like the _worst_ person in the world to work with. At least she actually gives a shit about you; I mean, I saw the way she looked at you the other night—she’s got it _bad_.”

“You think so?”

“ _Absolutely_ ,” Wynonna said with conviction before tearing into her pancakes.

So the feeling in Waverly’s gut hadn’t been wrong after all. There was something different about the way Nicole simply _looked_ at her—like she was always listening, always thinking about what it was she was going to ask Waverly next. Not to mention, Nicole was no slouch herself, always willing to engage Waverly in conversation and ask about things she didn’t understand.

Her gut feeling may not have been wrong, but it certainly threw a wrench into the well-calibrated works of Waverly’s life plans.

“Baby girl, why do you look like…that?” Wynonna asked.

“Like what?”

“Like you’re about to start contemplating the very fabric of reality itself,” Wynonna said, narrowing her eyes in her sister’s direction.

“I do _not!_ ”

“Oh, but you _do,_ ” Wynonna said with a smug laugh. “There’s a _look_ you get when you’re about to start working yourself up over something, so spill it.”

“I am not ‘ _working myself up_ ’ over anything,” Waverly said, unable to disguise the hint of uncertainty creeping into her voice. “I just…wasn’t expecting any of this to happen, that’s all!”

“Nothing ever happens according to plan, that’s literally how life _works_ ,” Wynonna said. “So, I repeat, _spill it._ What is it about Haught Sauce that’s got you questioning your whole life?”

Waverly didn’t want to admit it, but everything about her relationship with Nicole was making her nervous.

Her plans back at the beginning of the summer never included a relationship. Waverly was simply going to live at home, do some farm work, and decompress a little while she carefully planned out the next steps of her professional career. At her core, Waverly Earp was still a planner, and she didn’t always know what to do when those plans were interrupted.

“Nicole’s _obviously_ enamored, baby girl,” Wynonna said, her voice softening as she attempted to bring her sister back to Earth. “She wouldn’t want you to shut her out. You really should talk to her if something’s freaking you out.”

“It’s not her fault,” Waverly sighed. “I’m probably just overthinking things, that’s all.”

“Whatever you say, Waverly,” Wynonna said, narrowing her eyes suspiciously across the table at her sister. “You deserve the best, and Nicole…she might just be the closest thing.”

“When the hell did you get so wise, anyway?” Waverly asked incredulously.

  
“Clearly it comes with age.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [This fic has a playlist!](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1XN4lEtTXMKw9vY9y9Mfb5?si=10Fw9oGQTeKntedKTUXljw) It's full of bops!
> 
> [Come yell at me on Twitter,](https://twitter.com/unsaltysaltines) and leave a comment if you have thoughts! I love to hear them!!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> World events leave Nicole feeling more than a little shaken, and Waverly ends up learning a little more about her girlfriend's past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all!
> 
> This chapter has been sitting in my drafts for so long that I was starting to go more than a little bit crazy just STARING at it.
> 
> So here it is, flung out into the world for everyone to see!

Nicole had been acting strangely all week. Waverly wondered if it was the impending Thanksgiving holiday that was causing her to act jumpy—the redhead had never gone into detail about it, but beyond her brother Waverly knew she didn’t have much, if any, relationship with her family. She didn’t talk about it often, and when she did her entire demeanour grew heavier before she immediately began searching for the closest conversational segue.

So, in an attempt to make her girlfriend feel better, Waverly took it upon herself to shower Nicole with extra attention in the rare moments they could find to be alone. Waverly even managed to find the time to bake some cookies and slip them into Nicole’s lunch without her noticing—peanut butter, her favourite—and to invite her to join them for Thanksgiving dinner.

“It’s not like we get much of a day off,” Waverly said quietly as she wrapped her arms around Nicole’s waist. “But there’s still gonna be plenty of food. I think Wynonna might even show up.”

“Can I let you know?” Nicole asked, her voice tense. “It’s not that I _don’t_ want to, I’ve just been feeling…off all this week.”

“Of course,” Waverly said quietly.

Monday came, and Nicole didn’t end up joining them for dinner after all—ever polite, she thanked Gus for the invitation (and accepted the food that was thrust into her hands anyway) before kissing Waverly sweetly and heading home early for the afternoon.

“I’ll talk to her tomorrow,” Waverly sighed as she sank down at the kitchen table. “Find out what’s got her bothered.”

***

Waverly stumbled out of bed the next morning to a hasty note from Gus left beside the coffee pot.

_Nicole sick, gone to start chores._

Confused, Waverly read the note a couple more times as she prepared her coffee. Nicole had seemed just fine the night before, hardly sick at all. Before leaving the house to help her aunt, Waverly picked up the handheld extension in the kitchen and dialed Nicole’s phone number.

Waverly sighed when Nicole’s answering machine picked up, but switched on a cheery façade anyway once the machine beeped, indicating she could leave a message.

“Hi Nicole! Just wanted to see how you’re feeling, call me later if you feel up to it!”

As she hung up, Waverly sighed again. Something wasn’t sitting right in the pit of her stomach, and she hoped that that feeling would turn out to be entirely unfounded as the day went on.

“Mornin’, sweetie,” Gus said when Waverly appeared in the doorway of the barn, her tone entirely too chipper for the pre-dawn hours of the morning. In response, Waverly grumbled something resembling a greeting before jumping in to help her aunt get the morning chores going.

Most of the day passed uneventfully; there was a little more for each of them to do without Nicole around, but Waverly was surprised she didn’t have to kick Champ’s ass half as much as she’d expected to.

“Waverly?”

Gus appeared in the barn door just as she was finishing feeding her goats at the end of the day, and Waverly looked up from what she was doing.

“Yeah, what’s up?”

“Can you run on over to Nicole’s when you’re done here and find out if she’s all right? I don’t know what it is, but I’m worried about her.”

“Sure,” Waverly said, her own mild anxiety not reassured at all by Gus’s worried tone. “I’ll be done here in a minute, then I’ll head over.”

As she hurried to finish feeding, Waverly’s mind wandered to everything that might possibly be wrong. Nicole hadn’t called in sick once in all the time Waverly had known her, and the fact that she’d seemed okay the day before only served to worry Waverly even more. The only conclusion she could come up with was that something serious must have happened.

Waverly changed quickly once she got back to the house, tossing her jeans and flannel shirt in the vague direction of her hamper, for once not caring that they didn’t quite make it in and that her room would _probably_ smell like the barn by the time she got home. She grabbed the closest pair of clean jeans she could find and pulled on her favourite striped sweater that she’d swiped from Nicole before practically running back out the front door, pausing only to say a quick goodbye to Gus.

***

Nicole’s truck was parked in her driveway, which Waverly hoped was a good sign. She tried her front door and found that it was unlocked.

_Strange._

“Nicole?” Waverly called to the quiet house. As she listened for signs of life, she heard water running upstairs and breathed a sigh of relief.

So Nicole wasn’t _dead._

“Nicole?” she called again as she ascended the stairs. 

“Waverly?”

The water stopped and a moment later a confused Nicole appeared in the bathroom doorway, holding a towel tight around her chest. Her hair hung damp over her shoulders, framing her face, and her eyes looked red as though she’d been crying.

“W-What’re you doing here?” Nicole stammered, eyes wide with surprise.

“We were worried about you.” Waverly said. “Gus and I. Sorry for surprising you.”

“It’s okay,” Nicole said quietly, turning away from Waverly toward her bedroom. “C’mon up.”

Waverly walked up the last few steps slowly, following Nicole into her bedroom.

“Baby, have you been crying?” She asked as she stretched out on her girlfriend’s very comfortable bed. “What happened?”

Nicole didn’t answer her right away as she dressed quickly in sweatpants and an old concert t-shirt she’d cut the sleeves off of. She sank down on her bed beside Waverly, who watched as the redhead began absentmindedly twisting and untwisting the corner of her towel, not making eye contact.

“C’mere,” Waverly said as she gently tugged the towel from Nicole’s hands and set it down beside her. She sat up and moved closer to the other woman, threading her fingers through Nicole’s as she kissed her cheek gently.

“A kid was murdered.”

Nicole’s voice shook slightly as she said it, and Waverly couldn’t help but furrow her brow in confusion.

“Was it…someone you knew?”

“No.” Nicole said, shaking her head. “A kid in the States. They…” she took a deep breath before continuing, “They beat him, tied him to a fence, and left him to _die_. Just because—” Nicole’s voice broke. “Because he was gay.”

She didn’t know what to say to Waverly, whose eyes were wide and who looked like she had a thousand follow-up questions. Her own heart was hammering with anxiety, and she was fighting to keep her breathing even and keep old memories from coming boiling back to the surface.

Nicole looked up from where her hands were intertwined with Waverly’s to meet the brunette’s hazel eyes.

“Waves…” she said quietly, “We _need_ to be careful. I know you’ve lived here almost your whole life, but I…haven’t.”

“What d’you mean?” Waverly asked.

“I know how small towns can be, and I _know_ everyone in Purgatory already sees me as an outsider.” Nicole tried to keep her voice level. She couldn’t let herself give into her panic when there wasn’t yet anything to panic about. However, it was hard to keep from losing control completely when she could feel her anxiety coiling up in her like a spring.

Waverly let go of Nicole’s hands with one of hers and rested it gently between her shoulder blades, which caused Nicole to jump and let out a tiny yelp.

“Hey…” Waverly said quietly, “It’s okay.”

It made sense that Nicole was worried. Purgatory was a town where everyone prided themselves on knowing everyone _else_ ’ _s_ business, and few people were more intimately familiar with that compulsion than the Earp sisters. Rumours and gossip about their family had followed both Waverly and Wynonna through their school years and beyond, and it had taken a toll on them both.

Waverly barely had a toe out of the closet in Purgatory. Hell, it was only in the last few months that she’d even _begun_ to second-guess her supposed heterosexuality. Even in those few months, though, it quickly became clear to her that she had gotten lucky in the amount of support she received from both Gus and Wynonna.

There wasn’t a single doubt in her mind that either of them would stand up for her in a moment.

On the other hand, Nicole only ever talked about her brother. The redhead hadn’t volunteered any additional information about her family or her parents, and Waverly didn’t think she needed to pry much further for an indication that her family wasn’t exactly supportive.

“I’m _really_ sorry I missed work today,” Nicole said thickly. She sniffed deeply in an attempt to hide the fact that she was trying not to break down again. “It feels like I’m overreacting, especially when I didn’t know the kid.”

“I don’t think you’re overreacting at all.” Waverly said. She leaned close to Nicole and rested her head on the other woman’s shoulder. “What happened is awful. And I know…” she sighed “I know he’s not the first.”

“It’s so hard.” Nicole’s voice broke again as she continued to stare straight ahead. “All I want is to be able to walk around without having to worry so much about what everyone around me is thinking. I’m so _tired_ of policing how I dress or talk or interact with you in public because I can _feel_ them sizing me up every time I’m out at the grocery store or the library. I shouldn’t have to spend my life tiptoeing around people who can’t wrap their heads around the fact that I’m not _ashamed_!”

Nicole’s voice crescendoed into a sharp exclamation, but Waverly was quiet. This was all _so_ new to her; she didn’t know how to even begin to comfort Nicole when she could hardly pin down her own emotions.

Before she could say anything, though, Nicole sighed and got up from the bed.

“I think I’ve got some whiskey downstairs,” she said quietly. “Want a drink? Or five?”

“A drink would be nice.”

Waverly stood up and wrapped her arms around the taller woman’s waist. Nicole’s eyes were heavy with exhaustion, and Waverly did the only thing she could think to do. She stood on her tiptoes and kissed the redhead gently, pulling their bodies even closer together and drawing a soft sigh from Nicole.

After a quiet moment, Waverly followed Nicole back downstairs, where she unearthed a bottle of whiskey and two glasses. Nicole poured them each a drink and drained her own in one long gulp, relishing the way the alcohol burned the whole way down. As she poured herself a second drink, setting the bottle down on the coffee table, she looked over to see Waverly watching her with intense, worried eyes.

“Baby, what aren’t you telling me?” Waverly asked quietly. “It’s okay, you know. I won’t judge you.”

Nicole sighed and stared at the amber liquid in her glass, swirling it around absentmindedly.

***

_It’s a quiet summer night, and they come out of nowhere as she’s walking back to her best friend’s house._

_Seemingly disembodied hands grab Nicole by the collar of her shirt and shove her forward, into the middle of the same gang that’s been making her life miserable for years._

_Nicole tries to shove past them and keep walking, but these boys have other plans. Before she can even try to defend herself, Nicole is knocked to the ground, her head hitting the pavement so hard she sees stars._

_Fag._

_Dyke._

_Homo._

_They berate and belittle her as their blows collide repeatedly with Nicole’s abdomen, her head, anywhere they can reach. It’s several minutes before Nicole sees an opening, before she can scramble to her feet and attempt to fight back to defend herself. She wipes blood from her face (whether it’s from her mouth or nose, she can’t tell) and looks around at the familiar faces._

_Terror is the name of the game as Nicole sways slightly on her feet and pivots so she can get a good look at the ring of boys._

_“You’re a bunch of_ fucking _cowards,” she spits. Every breath she takes sends a wave of pain rippling through her chest, but she hardly notices as she lunges forward to strike back. Trevor may be a linebacker, but he’s not ready for Nicole’s fist to connect so hard with his face. He stumbles back, surprised, his jaw slightly agape._

_“You’re gonna pay for that you fucking dyke,” he growls, the threatening tone not masked one bit by the fact that he’s holding his now-bleeding nose._

_“You’ll have to catch me first,” Nicole gasps._

_Hours of playing football with Liam and his friends in their backyard suddenly pays off as Nicole seizes on a moment of weakness and abruptly shoves her way through, She takes off running down the street—Eliza’s house isn’t much further, and she’s almost made it before her body starts to protest and she stumbles over an uneven spot in the road. Nicole feels her ankle twist painfully and before she knows it, she’s back on the ground, running footsteps growing closer behind her._

_They hit harder this time, punishment for Nicole daring to fight back. All the air gets knocked out of her as boots collide with her abdomen—or whatever they could get a go at, once Nicole managed to curl herself into a tight fetal position. and their final insults ring in their ears as they finally leave her, alone and bleeding, in the middle of the road._

***

The sound of something shattering snapped Nicole out of her trance. 

She looked down to find that her glass had slipped from her hands and broken, spilled whiskey slowly spreading in a puddle at her feet.

“I should…clean that up,” Nicole said slowly, feeling dazed as she stared at the mess on the floor.

“Sweetie, don’t move.”

Waverly set down her own drink and was off the couch in a flash. Nicole just continued to stare at the mess of broken glass and whiskey without really seeing it, her mind still preoccupied with memories of that night.

Waverly hurried back into the living room, a towel in one hand and a broom and dustpan in the other. She pulled Nicole’s coffee table back so she could kneel in front of the other woman, careful to avoid the glass littering the floor. Carefully avoiding their sharp edges, Waverly picked up the large pieces of glass and tossed them aside in the dustpan before she began cleaning up the spilled alcohol.

“Nicole?”

The redhead looked up at the sound of her name, and Waverly saw her big brown eyes were vacant and hazy.

“Nicole, can you look me in the eyes?” Waverly asked. “I need to clean up around your feet, okay?” She said quietly. 

Not wanting to startle her, Waverly waited until Nicole acknowledged that she’d heard her with a nod. Carefully, Waverly began mopping up the whiskey, and noticed that it had taken on a reddish tint. A piece of glass had cut Nicole’s foot, and Waverly didn’t think she had even noticed.

The first aid kit under the sink was well-stocked with both gauze and medical tape, and Waverly’s hands were gentle as she finished cleaning the spill and took care of the bleeding wound.

The sting of her cut foot brought Nicole fully back to the present with a small gasp. Reflexively, she tried to pull her foot away, but Waverly’s hold was firm.

“Just another minute,” Waverly said gently, not releasing her grip. “I’m almost done.”

She made quick work of bandaging the cut and disposed of everything in the kitchen. When she returned to the living room, she pulled the coffee table close to Nicole and perched herself on the edge so she could make eye contact with the redhead. She rested her hands on Nicole’s knees, and the gentle contact caused Nicole to jump.

“Baby, where’d you go?” Waverly asked. 

“I…don’t know what happened,” Nicole said slowly. “I’ve…that’s never happened before.” It was hard to find the words to describe what she’d experienced. “‘I’ve never had a flashback like that.”

“To what?”

With a deep breath, Nicole decided to start from the beginning.

“When I was in high school, something…happened.”

Waverly tucked herself in the corner of the couch beside Nicole, putting an arm around her shoulders in a supportive gesture. “Whatever you need, I’m here. You can talk to me.”

Nicole took Waverly’s other hand in hers and sighed, grounding herself as she continued.

“I was in grade 12 and dating my first girlfriend. We were pretty quiet about it, because we both knew things would be…bad if we came out. We were _so_ careful, but somehow…her ex and his friends found out.”

“Oh, Nicole…” Waverly murmured. She pressed a soft kiss to her temple and squeezed her hand, encouraging her to continue.

“They were football players, a bunch of assholes who I didn’t really interact with. I could ignore it when they were just making comments in the halls, or leaving notes in my locker, or shoving me around in the school parking lot. I never thought—” Nicole’s voice broke. “I never thought they’d go _that_ far.”

Nicole paused and took a deep, shaky breath in an attempt to hold off the tears that were beginning to blur the edges of her vision.

“How far, Nicole?” Waverly asked, afraid of what was going to come next.

“I was walking back to my best friend’s house after a date, and a whole group of them just…came out of nowhere. I got away at first, but they caught up and…” Nicole screwed her eyes shut tight, hoping to drive away the memories. “I made it to Eliza’s front door, and she and her dad brought me to the hospital, but if I hadn’t gotten to them in time…I could have ended up…”

_Dead._

She’d been thinking it to herself over and over all day. 

With Waverly’s arms around her, Nicole felt safe, even as tears began streaming down her cheeks.

“Baby, I’m so sorry,” Waverly said as she held the other woman close. “I’m so, so sorry…and I wish I could say _anything_ else.”

“It’s okay,” Nicole said quietly.

“No, it’s not!” Waverly said. “ _Nothing_ about this is okay. I’m upset that this happened to you, and I’m upset about what happened to that kid, and I’m _upset_ that we can’t just _be_ together without worrying about whether or not it could happen to us!”

“I know, baby. Believe me, I know.”

Once they decided to turn in for the night, Nicole desperately wished she could sleep as soundly as the brunette who was curled beside her, bundled up in blankets up to her nose against the chilly Alberta night. Though Nicole couldn’t exactly blame her; Waverly had worked a full day before walking into the mess that was Nicole’s own emotions, so she surely had to be exhausted. 

Every time Nicole began to so much as doze, however, that night flashed through her head over and over. As she tossed and turned, she allowed herself to revisit some of the memories she’d locked away for nearly ten years.

***

_Nicole’s first priority is to get herself out of the road, because the last thing she needs right now is to get flattened like a pancake. She half crawls, half drags herself to the shoulder, where she props herself up against a telephone pole to assess the situation._

_The streetlight provides just enough light for Nicole to see that nothing seems to be visibly broken, but that she’s bleeding all over both her favourite Tragically Hip t-shirt_ and _the flannel she’d thrown on over it._

_“Shit,” she hisses._

_Eliza’s house isn’t far._

_Using the telephone pole to steady her, Nicole slowly gets to her feet. She has to make it to Eliza’s, because she thinks she needs to go to the hospital, and she can’t afford to wait for someone to drive by and maybe notice her on the side of the road._

_Nicole’s head is pounding, and every breath she takes sends pain rippling through her chest, but she doesn’t let herself think about it. Not until she rounds a bend in the road and sees the Shapiro’s house. She rings the doorbell three times in quick succession before her legs give out and she crumples in a heap on the front porch._

_“Dude, you just woke up my whole fucking house! What’s y-_ Nicole _??”_

_“A little help here, Shapiro?” Nicole groans._

_“Dude, I thought you were going out on a date, not to_ fight club _!”_

_Nicole can’t even chuckle at the joke as the other girl helps her up and into the house. It hurts too much._

_“I think I need to go to the hospital,” Nicole says quietly as she sits down at the kitchen table. The other girl is busying herself at the sink, and Nicole sighs in relief when she’s handed a hot, damp towel._

_“You clean that blood off your face while I go get my dad, okay?” Eliza says._

_With the gentlest of touches, Nicole sponges the dried blood off of her nose, face, and shirt as Eliza disappears down the hallway towards her parents’ bedroom. Over the sound of her headache pounding in her ears, she hears low, urgent voices coming from the bedroom, followed by the sound of movement._

_Nicole leans on her friend for support as they walk slowly out to the car. Eliza slides in first and helps Nicole settle herself in the least painful position she can find in the backseat, which ends up being on her back with her head in Eliza’s lap. Everything hurts so much, but Nicole is determined to keep herself at least somewhat alert and aware—she has to stay awake, no matter what._

_When Eliza’s dad hits a bump in the uneven road, it sends a blinding wave of pain through Nicole’s body and she breaks down completely. Mercifully, Eliza doesn’t even bat an eye; she lets Nicole squeeze her hand as tight as she needs while keeping up a steady, running monologue about nothing._

_It’s not until the doctor comes in with her test results that Nicole finally accepts that her parents are going to find out what happened._

_They don’t know she’s dating anyone, let alone another girl, and Nicole doesn’t have the time or the strength to come up with any kind of decent cover story._

_“It’ll be okay,” Eliza says quietly while they wait for Nicole to be brought to the operating room. “It’s gotta be. They can’t be upset when you’re about to have emergency surgery.”_

_Nicole laughs weakly. “I wouldn’t be so sure.”_

_Even in spite of Eliza’s optimism, when she wakes up from the surgery to stop the bleeding in her abdomen, Nicole knows her parents won’t be there waiting._

_Her parents aren’t waiting for her, but her brother is._

***

The events of the previous night were immediately brought back to the front of Waverly’s mind when she woke early the next morning. 

Nicole was sound asleep beside her, a worried look on her face. Waverly’s heart ached as she remembered all that Nicole had told her the night before, and she wondered how much longer she’d been awake after Waverly had fallen asleep. 

Nicole’s ponytail had come loose during the night, and a few locks of bright hair were hanging in front of her face. Waverly reached out to tuck it behind her ear, and her heart ached when Nicole flinched away from the gentle touch with a small whimper of discomfort.

“Sorry, baby,” Waverly said, hopefully quietly enough that Nicole wouldn’t be able to hear.

Nicole stirred beside her and mumbled a string of garbled, sleepy nonsense.

“C’mere,” Waverly murmured, reaching out for the groggy redhead. Nicole, her entire body still heavy with sleep, allowed Waverly to wrap her arms around her and bring her in close to her body. She slid down further in the bed so her head was resting under Waverly’s chin and draped an arm loosely around her waist, allowing the brunette to protectively hold her close.

“I’ve got you,” Waverly said quietly, kissing the top of Nicole’s head. “Go back to sleep.”

The comfort of Waverly’s arms around her allowed Nicole to drift almost immediately back off to sleep. She slept easier with the smaller woman holding her close and, when she woke again, was surprised to find that they’d slept most of the morning away.

“How are you feeling?” Waverly asked sleepily as Nicole attempted to stretch without extracting herself from her arms. “About…everything?”

Nicole paused for a moment and sighed. “I’m glad I got some of that off my chest last night.” She kissed Waverly softly and fell quiet again.

“Why don’t I go make us both breakfast, hm?”

Before Nicole could say a thing, however, Waverly’s question was answered by a loud growl from Nicole’s stomach. 

Nicole burst out laughing, the sound echoing through the bedroom, free and entirely uninhibited, her dimples on full display.

“I guess that’s my answer,” Waverly said with a grin. Nicole extracted herself from Waverly’s arms and rolled herself out of bed.

When Waverly set a plate of blueberry pancakes in the middle of Nicole’s kitchen table half an hour later, she noticed that the rest of the house seemed awfully quiet. Looking out the back door, she could see Nicole had settled herself on the porch steps, her coffee sitting untouched beside her.

Waverly knocked gently on the back door as she opened it, causing Nicole to jump.

“I didn’t mean to scare you!” Waverly said quickly. “It’s just…breakfast is ready.”

“Be right there, baby.”

Nicole didn’t face Waverly, and her voice was quiet. One hand appeared from beneath the blanket draped over her shoulders to carefully pick up the mug beside her before she stood up. When she turned around, Waverly could see that her eyes were red and that she looked to be on the verge of tears again.

“C’mere,” Waverly said, shivering in the cool autumn air as she motioned for Nicole to come inside. She closed the door behind Nicole and set the still-full coffee mug down on the coffee table before reaching up to take Nicole’s face in her hands. 

At the soft touch, Nicole turned her face slightly to lean into Waverly’s hand, seeking comfort from the small gesture.

“Hey…” Waverly brushed tears from Nicole’s cheeks before wrapping her arms around the taller woman. “What’s wrong? You still thinking about yesterday?”

Nicole nodded, squeezing her eyes shut tight against the flood of tears threatening to spill out of her and feeling like she was only a few seconds away from collapsing on the floor.

“God, I’m sorry,” Nicole said as she took a deep breath. “I just…don’t really talk about that night. Not since it happened. So there’s a lot going on.”

In response, Waverly tightened her embrace, and Nicole was flooded again with that same overwhelming feeling of safety she’d experienced the night before.

“Come eat something, okay?” Waverly said quietly. “You’ll feel better.”

Nicole took Waverly’s hand in hers and kissed it gently. “Thanks, Waves.”

They both dug into Waverly’s delicious cooking, and Nicole watched her girlfriend closely. She hadn’t intended to wake up and immediately suck Waverly back into her own drama. In fact, she wanted to check in with Waverly to see if _she_ was doing okay.

“Nicole, I can hear you thinking from all the way over here.”

Waverly’s voice broke through Nicole’s racing thoughts. She looked up to find Waverly staring at her, eyebrows raised in what looked like amusement. Nicole laughed quietly at the brunette’s interruption and smiled softly.

“Just thinking.”

“About…?”

“Are _you_ okay?” Nicole asked tentatively. “I know that yesterday was probably a lot to think about, and I want you to feel like you can talk to me about it, y’know?”

Waverly set her fork down and rested her chin in her hand, eyeing Nicole thoughtfully across the table.

Nicole was right; the last 24 hours had been a lot. She was no stranger to homophobia; all through high school she’d felt helpless watching Robin, one of her best friends and the only gay kid in their grade, bear the brunt of their classmates’ cruelty.

But at the time, Waverly wasn’t dating a woman. She was dating Champ, whose own prejudices were on full display all the time, and whose mind Waverly spent endless hours trying to change.

“The last few months have been a lot to adjust to,” Waverly said, deciding it was better to be completely honest. “And I don’t regret _any_ of it,” she added, “but I’m noticing a lot of things about Purgatory that I guess I was never really…aware of before? If that makes sense?”

“It makes total sense.” Nicole nodded. “Because it wasn’t information you needed until now. When I started to realize I might be gay, all of a sudden I started to notice every unpleasant thing the people around me believed.” A dark look flashed across her face as she spoke. “It can be…a lot to deal with.”

“I’m sorry it was so hard for you, Nicole. I really am,” Waverly said. “Because it must have been so hard to go through all this alone. It’s hard to comprehend the idea that the people I grew up with and who I’ve known my whole life could very well just…turn on me for who I am.”

As she said it out loud, Waverly felt as though someone had knocked all the air out of her lungs. She’d put so much energy into how others saw her in every aspect of her life—in school, her relationships, her home life—that the very idea of losing even a small amount of control over any of it, quite frankly, terrified her.

“Waves,” Nicole said softly, “Look at me.”

Waverly looked up from where she’d let her gaze drop to meet Nicole’s eyes, and felt a bit of weight lift from her shoulders.

Even after all she’d been through, Nicole was still there. Still herself. Still looking at Waverly like she was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen.

“Being different is never easy,” Nicole said as she took both of Waverly’s hands in hers. “It can be downright scary, but in spite of that, I wouldn’t change anything about who I am. And I know you’re still figuring yourself out, but…as long as you want me, I will be by your side.”

Nicole’s eyes were warm and kind, and Waverly could tell she meant every word of what she said. As awful as the world might be, as long as she had Nicole Waverly felt like maybe she could handle losing a little bit of control.

“Hey, d’you mind if I give Gus a call?” Waverly asked quietly. “Just to let her know that you’re okay? I don’t have to tell her details, but she was worried about you yesterday.”

“I should do it,” Nicole said. “I owe her an explanation for yesterday. And today,” she added with a sheepish smile. “Since _neither_ of us are at work right now.”

“She’ll understand,” Waverly said with a small smile.

***

_Nicole is only 17; she’s not ready for any of this._

_She’s in the hospital for three days, and she misses the first two weeks of her senior year to boot._

_Liam is the one who breaks it to her that she won’t be returning home. Their parents don’t show up once, not even to disown her properly. Even though it isn’t a surprise to her, once visiting hours are over Nicole cries herself to sleep all the same._

_It feels surreal, walking into her brother’s spare bedroom and seeing her stuff haphazardly stuffed into boxes. Nicole spends the first few days back in a daze, alternating between sleeping and crying, barely able to leave her bedroom. Senior year starts around her, but she barely notices…or cares._

_Everyone stares at her in the halls when she returns, because of_ course _they all know what happened. Somehow, even though it’s Nicole who’d gotten the shit beaten out of her…everyone makes her feel like it’s somehow her fault._

_Nicole doesn’t know how she’s supposed to pay attention in school, so she simply…doesn’t._ _She does the bare minimum to stay afloat so she can still graduate—she needs that much—but the rest of the time, she curls up in bed and watches Golden Girls reruns until she falls asleep._

_A week after her return to school, Nicole breaks up with Shae._

_“I can’t put us both at risk again,” she says quietly, trying not to look at Shae’s huge, sad eyes. “Can’t put_ you _at risk.”_

_“Everybody knows it was me you were seeing that night, Nicole,” Shae says, staring intently at where she’s twiddling her thumbs in her lap._

_“And now you can say it was all a mistake!” Nicole exclaims. “Everyone loves you so much, they’ll take you right back.”_

_“But…what if I don’t_ want _them to take me back?” Shae sniffs. “I don’t_ want _to go back in the closet, not_ now _!”_

_Nicole melts a little, and it’s almost enough to convince her to relent._ Almost _._

_“Just…until we graduate,” Nicole murmurs. “I need to fly under the radar until then. I can’t take much more.”_

_“I’m going to hold you to that, Nicole,” Shae says with a smile before leaning in and kissing Nicole one last time._

_She turns and walks back down the hall, and Nicole’s weak smile fades. Shae wants to be a doctor, and she’s certainly smart enough to get there. Nicole won’t be the one who holds her back._

_Somehow,_ somehow _Nicole makes it to graduation without another “incident,” but she refuses to go to the bullshit ceremony. Instead, Liam takes her riding to take her mind off things, and for the first time in months Nicole feels like things are coming back under her control._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof.
> 
> Y'all still hanging in there with me?
> 
> [Feel free to come yell at me on Twitter.](https://twitter.com/unsaltysaltines)
> 
> [This fic has a playlist!](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1XN4lEtTXMKw9vY9y9Mfb5?si=cPOb-yHZQ0emj3l7SDP2mw)

**Author's Note:**

> [This fic has a playlist!](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1XN4lEtTXMKw9vY9y9Mfb5?si=dB_6nu4RQbSpn0_9S_YyCg)
> 
> As always, thanks [Blankagenda](https://twitter.com/Blankagenda) for betaing and letting me bombard them constantly with my ridiculous ideas!
> 
> [Come yell at me on Twitter!](https://twitter.com/unsaltysaltines)


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